


Moonshine

by RedFoxOfWallStreet



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Blood Lust, Blood and Injury, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/F, F/M, Fighting, Firearms too, Frustration, Hate Sex, Houen-chihou | Hoenn Region (Pokemon), Human/Pokemon Relationship(s), Love/Hate, Masturbation, Minor Character Death, Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Poachers, Pokemon, Pokephilia, Revenge, Sexual Frustration, explicit language and depiction of injuries
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-05
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:42:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 34,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25083328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedFoxOfWallStreet/pseuds/RedFoxOfWallStreet
Summary: Have you ever gone too far? Feeling as if you had hit rock bottom and you want to go back. Sometimes you want to quit everything and wake up from the nightmare of life you have created. Sometimes embracing the truth and blunt reality hurts deeply and leaves sequels, but it has to be done. Are you willing to take the risk and burn the bridges behind?
Comments: 43
Kudos: 49





	1. Break Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Every journey starts somewhere. Dave along his pokemon companions face the true horror of human nature, marking an end to what seemed to be an uneventful night.

Fast paced waves of wind and rain clashed into each other, bringing the blurry mess to a hazy blizzard crashing into the leaves and strong trees of the forest. The storm had broken loose hours ago, with a tendency to create strong winds from time to time, along with deafening lightnings up within the clouds. Although it may sound as taken from an apocalyptic event, such violent weather was no stranger for the Hoenn region as sightings of one powerful legendary pokemon capable of controlling the weather were usual. Not many have had the chance to see the creature itself with the naked eye. Most witnesses claimed to have seen its shadow casted briefly by the powerful lightnings, but given that those tales took place during storms with such force it was hard to believe.  
  
It was a little past 8 pm, and the only lights seen deep within the outskirts of the volcano were given by a small single building, almost overlooked by the vegetation crawling up its walls and tree branches piling up on its roof. The building was well built, seemingly made out of concrete, and painted with the colors red, black, and yellow trimming. Although fading with the time, the colors have stood strong against the changing weather. The outpost was owned by the Pokemon Rangers, a branch of the police mainly trained to capture pokemon and protect the integrity of pokemon habitats. Inside there was nothing remarkable that met the eyes; Upon entering the outpost there would be a room furnished with a table, a monitor to receive vital information, and a huge window that would be facing the forest. On the wall at the back, there was a ladder leading to a lookout tower not too high up that had a telescope attached to each of the railings to give a zoomed view if needed. Next to the ladder there was a door, leading to a small bathroom.

Sitting in front of the desk was Dave, a young adult aged 23 and working as the ranger of the Hoenn region due to a call for help from the local authorities. He looked slim, having a skin tone darkened by the countless days working under the summer heat and harsh conditions. His hair was jet black, naturally straight and held up in a topknot to fit his issued cap. He stood at 5’7”, being just at the required stature for field officers, this mostly due to their harsh duty and having to deal with pokemon out of the bounds of a battle or any other trainer commanding them. There have been reported a high number of poachers, and even when the local police were skilled, they were no match against the thick forest and the experience of the poachers. Dave was given a three month shift, having started a week ago coincidently when the storms began to furiously unbind upon the region, strangely close to the volcanic zone.  
  
Although being only a few hours from Verdanturf Town, the class 7 ranger always packed food and water for a few days as he had encountered himself in critical situations stranded in the past. The monitor in front of him had a program open, it seemed simple and basic; just a few lines of text, two options, and a list that went on numbering sensors. It was used to monitor activity within the forest by detecting nearby pokemon or humans. Dave had started right after arrival, setting up the sensors on trees and rocks and finally setting up the signal linked to the antenna on the roof. Nothing seemed to change for a while, and he remained in his slumber.  
  
Suddenly however, sensor N°1 flashed, turning back off followed by a high-pitched beep. Dave didn't bother to look up, as it may have been the wind or the water doing its thing to the device. Sensor N°2 followed, and soon it seemed that all sensors until N°10 did the same, though this time staying on. By now Dave was wide awake, staring in confusion at the monitor and wondering what on earth could cause such activity. After all, the sensors were about 2 kilometers apart from each other. He lifted his gaze from the screen to look out the window, trying to see if there was anything big enough to have triggered the effect. What he saw made him jump slightly from his seat, as a series of lightnings struck the forest on the distance... though the most unnerving part were that some of those lightnings came from the forest to the sky.  
  
With no more time to lose, he stood up, suited with his pokeball belt, a rain coat, and his backpack, going for the door as the monitor briefly displayed all 30 sensors going off before going pitch black along with the room; The electricity was out.

**An hour earlier...**

"Hurry up and get these damn things loaded up! Those nets won't last all day for arceus' sake!"  
  
A young woman yelled from within an off-road jeep. The rain poured down on the group of people, working as fast as they could to pull up net after net of pokemon into the back of an ural style truck. The pokemon, some being fainted and others trying to fight back at the reinforced net were struggling, making the job all too hard along with the weather. The lights of the vehicles were almost not enough to cut through the dense rain and aid the poachers with their task. One of the nets was cut open, and blood was quickly thinning up and mixing with the mud. It seemed that the pokemon inside escaped and were either badly hurt or deadly injured by the poachers for breaking out.  
  
At the back of the ural there was a passed out rhyhorn, another net containing restrained beedrills, and now loading up a net with what seemed to be 6 pichu cowering into each other in fear. The total of men and women illegally capturing these pokemon was around 12, well armed and equipped with tranquilizers, venomous darts, along with nets, ropes, leather bindings, and other restraining elements. They were part of the multiple groups seen to have come and abuse the lack of police presence to capture pokemon and sell them back in the black market.  
  
After a few minutes the job was done, and both vehicles quickly started moving with the jeep at the lead. The mud and rocks didn't make it easy to sort through bumps and potholes on the improvised roads. The jeep had 6 of the crew members, two on the front and four sitting on the wooden bed behind the cabin. The young woman that seemed to lead the group was driving, checking a GPS from time to time that went on and off due to the strong storm.  
  
Distracted by the GPS not showing properly their location, she looked at it, giving it a smack. "The damn thing." She said, turning her head back to the other members.

  
"When we get back to Beta, tell Larry to fix up our equipment. I swear, this is the last time we go out during such a storm, it's not worth risking so much for petty prey" As she talked however, she didn't pick up the faint blue glow on the distance ahead on the road until it flashed in front of the windshield. She turned her head just in time to see a Lucario standing in the middle of the road, before feeling pain and the striking sound of the windshield exploding at the attack thrown at it.

Blinded by the glass shards all over herself, the woman tried to slam her foot on the brakes, but in a hit of bad luck and the sudden nature of the incident, she accidentally picked up the pace, driving the jeep directly into a tree close to the edge of the road. The Ural kept on its course, only stopping ahead as two of the people guarding the captured pokemon jumped out and rushed to the wrecked jeep.  
  
"What happened, did you see something?" One of the men yelled, to which the second answered:  
  
"Not a damn thing, is this an ambush? The police?”

  
Both hurriedly tried to make sense out of the situation as they ran to the jeep. They were met with a gruesome sight as one of the crew members had been thrown off the jeep through the broken windshield and against the tree. He seemed to be the only far from being helped as blood quickly poured down his forehead onto the jeep's hood.  
  
"Shit. Vanessa, are you alright?" One of the men said, going to the side of the driver as the second man went to the back to check on the rest of the crew.

All four who were sitting on the back crawled down, sitting on the floor, and groaning in pain. They were injured, but not as bad as the people seated in the cabin. Vanessa, the young leader of the group of poachers, slowly opened her eyes only to close her left one quickly and cursing out in pain. She pushed the door open, stumbling and forcing a knee onto the ground as she felt her left foot give against her weigh due to her injuries. She was furious.  
  
"Where's the animal. Where is it!" She yelled, holding her bleeding eye shut with her left hand. Eddie, one of the crew members from the truck who had checked on her helped her to get up.  
  
"They're in the truck. What happened? How did you just crash?" He asked.  
  
Vanessa beyond her limit of temper shouted back.  
"There's a Lucario, I saw it. Look for it, fuck!" She pushed Eddie away, leaning against a rock. "Kill it! I want its damn head on a bag, what are you waiting for!"

Eddie nodded, exchanging looks with the other man from the truck crew as the other four from the jeep were already getting on the back of the truck. Vanessa followed soon, being helped up.  
  
"Alright Jerry, you heard the boss, let's go!" He said, walking back towards the truck and being followed by his friend. Both took their dart rifles and headed into the forest, direction pointed by Vanessa.

**Back to the present...**

Dave held his radio on his left hand, receiving only interference and static sound as he tried to reach the local police center. He walked hurriedly through the forest, holding a flashlight on his right hand. His breathing was fast as he knew what he might have to face. Although he felt confident due to his experience and countless close encounters with wild pokemon and creatures, every time he ventured alone in these conditions there was a chance he may not come back.

He brought with him two of his companions inside their pokeballs. The pokemon that helped him had willingly joined him, showing they were fond of him and better off by his side helping him help other pokemon. Azura, a female Altaria which he found badly hurt and poorly nourished inside of a container during a raid to a cargo ship from a poacher's association recently joined his small team. At first, she showed resentment and aggressive behaviors towards humans, but she soon warmed up to Dave. She also showed eagerness to come back to Hoenn, region from which she belonged. The other pokemon was a female Zangoose which he found inside a pokeball years ago during a take down of an illegal trading center. To his surprise, when he popped out the pokeball it wasn't only a rare pokemon to be within poachers as they usually targeted less fierce creatures, but it also was a shiny zangoose. When rescued she showed no willingness nor affection for their rescuers, nor walked away when released back into the wild. She simply remained close to Dave until he offered to take her into his team. She accepted, though her attitude didn't change much. She's been loyal to Dave since then, occasionally letting him groom her which only happened in extremely rare occasions. As the Zangoose didn’t react to any name given by Dave, he opted to simply call her Zangy, thinking it sounded more affectionate than simply repeat her species’ name. Zangy didn’t seem amused.

After 20 minutes passed, Dave thought he may have already been by the location in which he saw the lightnings originated, but so far there was no sight of any fight nor damage to the nearby trees or ground. He soon found himself on an open area, mud and removed grass all over the place. _Certainly, here a battle broke loose_ he thought to himself, but soon these ideas faded as he realized the awful scene before his eyes. There were nets and broken pieces of rope almost covered by the rain and mud, trails of off-road vehicles and what seemed to be fur and traces of dragging around.  
  
"Poachers..." Said Dave to himself, moving his hand down to his belt, and taking one of the pokeballs out. He pressed the smooth metal button, making the ball grow before pointing upwards and releasing its contents. A red flash came out, quickly materializing into a ball of light which extended two cloud-like wings, along with a very soothing squeal. Azura didn't seem bothered by the weather, though the scene before her made her heart crack in sadness. She soon looked at her partner, tilting her head and waiting for orders.

  
"Scout the area and look for pokemon that may be injured or... or anything. Those bastards... Animals." Dave said in a grim tone of voice, feeling deeply for what the pokemon had to go through, starting to pick up the nets and examine them. Maybe he could link them to the ones used in previous cases.

The altaria quickly took flight, looking around for any pokemon that may have been left behind to die due to their injuries.

Dave was kneeling on the mud, coiling up a long remain of rope that seemed to have been chewed up every other section. He had already made a bundle of the netting left behind, attaching it to his belt, secured so he could bring proof back to the outpost and hopefully back to the police center for further examination. He was lost in his thoughts, his mind racing as he almost mechanically kept picking up some of the bigger pieces, leaving some behind for if they needed to reconstruct the scene. However, with this storm that didn’t seem to ease up, it was unlikely that any meaningful data could be collected from the quickly fading marks.

Suddenly he heard a long growing squeal coming from the sky, indicator that Azura had found something nearby. Maybe there was a silver lining to this situation, he had to hurry though, since he knew that reaching a pokemon medical center this late at night on foot was out of the picture. His only hope was to use one of his spare pokeballs to capture the injured pokemon so its wounds wouldn’t get any worse. He stood up, waving back at the Altaria to signal he was on the move. Dave looked around before going, just in case he may be being watched; with poachers it was never good to let your guard down.

A few minutes passed as Dave followed the tracks of the off-road vehicles along the “road” in the middle of the forest. He had to sort out a few rocks on the way and ankle-deep puddles of water before he saw a vehicle on the distance, which at first seemed to be parked on the side of the road. As he approached the jeep, he soon realized it wasn’t parked, but crashed into a tree. Whatever happened there must have been related to the netting and ropes left behind at the open area he left recently. The vehicle was trashed badly, and it didn’t seem to get dislodged off the tree by simply pushing it. The windshield was gone, and the seats were soaked enough to indicate it’s been sitting under the rain for a while now. There was a faint trail of blood along the frame of the windshield and stuck in the cavity where the windshield wipers would go.

There wasn’t much left in the vehicle to trace down whoever was the owner, and he didn’t have anything on himself to take a sample of the blood left behind which would surely be gone by the morning. Dave even checked the front bumper, but the license plate had been removed from both sides, leaving just an empty gap. As he pondered deeply on which actions to take, he heard something moving ahead into the thickness of the forest. He didn’t want to scare off whatever was in there, so he chose to aim the flashlight against his side, trying to focus his gaze into the shadowed vegetation. He saw something moving slowly, it seemed bipedal and apparently hurt due to a noticeably limping movement, which made his hopes rekindle to the thought of taking probably one of the only survivors to the whole situation. He quickly sorted through the seats of the jeep and started walking into the direction he saw movement, although not sure if he could keep track of it as the rain intensified, blinding his long range view of what was in front of himself.  
  
He looked up through the leaves, and noticed he was still being scouted by Azura, to which he rose the flashlight, signaling her to come down. Once the Altaria sank into the trees and floated effortlessly next to Dave he said.  
  
“Do you see someone up ahead? I think I saw a pokemon… Probably. Keep me updated, and if you see a runner, don’t leave their tail.”  
  
To this, Azura nodded, and as quick as she sank to the ground, she took flight extending her voluptuous wings. The whirlwinds of the storm glide swiftly along the curved of the skilled dragon-type pokemon, making flying seem as easy as breathing from the viewers on the ground. This helped Azura to focus her sight and mind into scouting from over the tree cups, however, having those be dense and heavily packed with water made the task harder than what she thought. Dave on his part, kept on walking forward, having to move plants aside and jump over puddles and other obstacles in the way. Suddenly, he saw everything clear and lit up by the roaring skies, although lasting for the blink of an eye and followed by the deafening thunder, he managed to visualize the moving figure again. He ran towards it, his mind going through different sightings of pokemon to try and pinpoint the species of the one wandering under the rain. He was met by a thick branch almost falling over him due to its leaves and the weight of water which he had to quickly move away as the figure was close.  
  
“Wait! I’m here to help, don’t move any further!” Dave shouted, trying to get the attention towards him. A blinding light shone at his gaze, making him squint his eyes and shield his sight with his forearm, feeling both confused and startled.  
  
“Who the heck is you?” Larry asked, holding up to Dave’s face the barrel of his dart rifle. Larry, part of the crew which went to look for the missing Lucario, was badly injured. There was a slash on his thigh, piercing through his cargo pants and blood stained all over. A sleeve of his jacked was missing, though with a second look you’d find it wrapped tightly around the injury. He seemed out of breath, and his partner, Eddie, was nowhere to be seen. “Scram before I open fire!” Larry added.   
  
“I’m Dave, there is no need to get hostile. I came here to investigate at the lights. Thought someone may be in trouble” Dave lied, knowing well that if he revealed being a ranger he might get shot on the spot. Unbeknownst to him, the weapon Larry held up was unloaded as he had already fired all his darts. The hands of the poacher were shaking, and he may have been close to passing out due to the blood loss along with being out in the rain for this long.  
  


Dave saw through this and decided it would be better to convince this stranger to calm down. Maybe he was lost, or he was mugged.

“Well… You are? What are you?” Larry asked, deciding it would be better to not engage into a fight in his state. Even if he had to stay loyal to his crew, he wouldn’t serve any good dead. He feared for his life at this point, and if it wasn’t for Dave showing up, he would drop dead by the morning.  
  
“I’m just here to help. I’m a Pokemon Ranger. There’s an outpost uphill if you need to rest. I have supplies” Dave disclosed, feeling it was better to tell the truth if this stranger was to come up. He did seem badly injured, and under this rain, it would be odd if any human being rejected some hospitality.  
  
Larry thought for a second, grinding his teeth and pulling the trigger of the weapon to no avail. He sighed, lowering the gun before using its strip to hang it off his shoulder. Stumbling, he grabbed Dave’s arm, feeling weak with the pass of seconds as he nodded.  
  
“This damn thing is out of ammo anyways and… yes… I’d appreciate some help. I need to contact someone to come pick me up in the morning. With this rain, I wouldn’t have made it and my radio broke.” Larry admitted after dreadful moments of defeat.  
  
Dave nodded to the man, thinking that if anything was to be out here, it probably wasn’t a pokemon anymore. Not with this weather. He waved up, signaling Azura to return as he led Larry back to his outpost. The way back was painful and slow for both, having worst luck when sorting obstacles and potholes that were even deeper now as the water wouldn’t give a chance for them to catch their breath.  
  
It was past midnight already when they made it back, seeing the lights back on at the outpost gave Dave a sigh of relief, although he soon started wondering how were they even on if the relay switches had to be triggered in order to get them back on. He let Larry catch his breath on a rock under a small roof outside as he attended his injuries before getting in so the blood wouldn’t drip to the floor. After doing so, he helped Larry up again who grunted in pain and tried to stand still with one eye closed out of exhaustion. Both men walked towards the door, which was… half open? Dave didn’t realize that until he leaned on it to push it open at which the door simply gave almost making both crash down onto the floor.  
  
“What the…” Was all that Larry could mutter in his state, losing his breath easily as he tried to hold the frame of the door at the sight.  
  
Dave was just as surprised as the injured man.  
  
At the wall opposite to the door, having the floor wet and messy with a mixture of water, mud, and blood, there was a weakly breathing and badly injured pokemon. Sitting against the wall, barely lifting its gaze to meet the ones of both poacher and ranger, was a Lucario. Its fur wet and heavy, a few wounds on its arms and probably undergoing other problems thanks to fighting against the poachers, breaking loose, and trying to make its way into shelter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, thank you so much if you made it this far. I'll be honest, I'm writing this before even starting on the story so... let me know how it goes. I hope it was decent as this would be my first try at this genre, and doing something that I'm excited about. The works from Choicebrogan and Xianyu inspired me deeply to write my own, so, thanks both of you (even though I know the chances of any of those great authors to stop by are less than slim.) Anyways! Have a good one.
> 
> Edit: Thank you for your feedback, I addressed the issues and updated the last part of this chapter. It's finished so far, so enjoy! Thanks again for reading.


	2. Tied Fate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath slowly washes away for Dave, taking some time to ponder about what actions to take.

Both men stood there for a second, frozen by the sudden appearance of the intruder, until Dave decided to dismiss the presence of the Lucario for the time being. It had already been a weird night, so adding into it would simply get things worse. Besides, now he was slowly getting two and two together, thinking of a way to play this off, and hopefully the other one involved in his plan would collaborate.  
  
“Luca, I’m glad you’re back. You seem to have received quite a beating, tough training?” Dave lied, directing those words at the Lucario sitting on the floor whose head barely moved at their words. He then proceeded to help Larry into a bench bolted to the wall, hoping to pass this as something usual. While Dave thought of a way to get hold of a brand new pokeball without seeming too suspicious, Larry took his time to speak.  
  
“Ar… are ya’ sure that’s yours? I… That’s a lovely pokemon you’ve got there. I just” Larry coughed, slowly collapsing onto the bench, probably in worst shape than initially thought. “I just need to close my eyes… for a moment” he added.  
  
This gave Dave a brand-new sense of relief, one such as taking off a huge lead backpack. Maybe with the stranger’s state he could pass it off as hallucinations, or delirium given by his post-shock condition and maybe hypothermia. He reached to the wall keeping his distance from the Lucario, knowing an injured pokemon wouldn’t skip a beat to attack back if threatened, and opened a small drawer from the desk with the monitor on top. From within the drawer, he took a small white and green box which looked like a first aid kit.  
  
“Don’t worry stranger, you’ll feel better by the morning, trust me. I’ll give you some medicine and time to heal up, then we can see what to do.”  
  
Larry didn’t answer to that last bit of information as he was already passed out, nearly falling off the bench. Now that Dave could get a better look at the stranger, his doubts were getting clarified one by one. Larry wore cargo pans, a thick slash-proof shirt, and a beaten-up jacket. His left arm was missing the sleeve of his jacket which has been tore off to tighten the wound on his left thigh. Although the rest of his limbs and torso seemed unscathed, his overall health seemed to have gotten worse gradually. Maybe he was poisoned, or had he been struck with something leaving internal wounds? There was no way to know or see to which extent he was damaged without attending a medical center. While those thoughts went through Dave’s mind, he had taken out a small shiny square seemingly made from aluminum, unfolded it to reveal a safety blanket, and then placed it over Larry’s body.  
  
“That should do it for a few hours while I get some pills from my backpack. Now…” Dave said, turning around to face at the Lucario, who to his surprise, was attempting to stand up with the help of the table.

Dave knew this would only worsen the conditions of the pokemon, so after giving the idea a few seconds to seep in, he decided to take it upon himself to attend this injured Lucario. Cautiously he walked closer to the pokemon, taking a closer look to the damage done on its body. Both arms of the pokemon were bruised badly, with one of them having a cut so deep that a steady but slow dripping of blood ran down its fur onto the tip of its paw and onto the floor. Its breathing was jaded, cut short by what seemed to be pain on its left side of the torso probably due to internal trauma. Suddenly, Dave got his thoughts shaken away as he was met eye to eye with the gaze of the Lucario, looking directly into his own eyes. Dave could only wonder how any creature could withstand such beating, and this question being easily answered with the sole look of its eyes. What he saw on the Lucario’s eyes was something he barely saw even on the most skilled rangers: He saw a fearless creature, willing to give until the last breath for whatever reason deemed worthy enough to fight for.

“I’m really sorry buddy, I know you won’t willingly accept to this, and trust me, I’m not trying to take advantage of you.” Said Dave as he reached back with his right hand onto his pokeballs belt, feeling for the ones he knew were empty and ready for capture. He knew wild pokemon were not fond of such devices, but if he planned to keep both the possible poacher and the pokemon alive, that had to be done.  
“I promise you’ll feel better once inside. I’ll get you back in shape and release you back.” Dave added.  
  
The Lucario didn’t bother to even look at what he was doing, knowing as well the intensity of the damage taken. What other options it had? The pokemon used the last of its strength to get at the outpost and it was in no shape to fight back even if it wanted to. The rain kept on crashing loudly against the window of the Pokemon Ranger building, leaves and small twigs being blown away by the intensity of the blizzard-like winds. From the outside of the building a brief red flash could be seen briefly through the window.

The rain pooling up on the roof and dribbling down the walls, making its way through the peeling bits of paint and finally joining into the multiple water flows running down to the forest that passed nearby. The nearby trees dancing to the strength of the storm, offering little to no shelter to any pokemon that chose to seek guarding from the inclemency of nature. The forest ahead had come back to a slow simmer of a storm with no lightnings to be seen anywhere, only the clouds pouring its entire worth of might down.  
  


**In the morning…**

_“You know Dave, do you think I have lost faith in you?”_

_“What else could it be? I don’t think I have it in me anymore. You’re gone. We’re over, and that’s something I can’t fix”_

_“So, it’s not a problem. It has never been, and you know it well”_

_“Just give me a break. Just give me a break, I’m still trying, pushing forward, even though it may not seem that way. I am not perfect either, you know that. I know that.”_

_“… You have always been able to do more”_

_“… more.”  
  
_

The sound of the alarm signaling nine in the morning suddenly overwhelmed those words as a twenty feet wave crashing against sandcastles. Dave opened his eyes, shaking his head after a few blinks, resolving to simply rub his face to wake up properly. Slowly he turned his whole body to his side, propping up with his elbow to sit up on his sleeping bag. The events of the past night came to his mind as quick as the word _‘more’_ seemed to leave his mind, thinking of it as a bad dream. He looked around the room only to find an empty room, the stranger nowhere to be seen. The aluminum blanket was crumbled up on the floor, and the cuffs he had used to make sure the possible poacher didn’t scape or try to hurt him were hanging off the embedded bench. Dave instantly pushed the sleeping bag off him, scrambling out to stand up as fast as he could, rushing towards his backpack that was now on the floor instead of on his chair as it usually would. He damned his heavy sleeping over and over as he went through his belongings desperately. After a moment he sighed in relief, dropping back on the floor butt first as his breathing started to calm down. For a second, he thought he’d throw up his fast-pacing heart, but after making sure what he was looking for was still there, he was relieved.  
  
“Just… Imagine if I had… I can’t even finish that sentence.” Dave said, looking down at his hand while holding two pokeballs.

He remembered taking off his belt of pokeballs and hanging it on the chair, though since he had a stranger in the house, he took the balls of Azura and Zangy and put them in his back, thinking they’d be more secure just in case. His thumb toyed over the metallic button of one of the balls, giving it a few gentle pushes but not triggering it yet. Should he release them and feed them the details? What about the Lucario recently captured? He knew taking that decision was vital for the survival of the pokemon, but at the same time what he did went against all what he stood for. He had sworn to never take advantage of injured or any creature on a bad shape, or not being able to fight back, yet he found himself having to capture a Lucario during those circumstances. It was a stretch, sure, but it still didn’t feel right. He needed to get to the closest pokemon center at Verdanturf Town to have it patched up, and… release it? Lucarios weren’t known for having it so bad against other pokemon. No. This must have been done by the poachers, and that means they may still be on the look out for an injured Lucario.  
  
“If only you guys could give me advice. Well, one I could understand other than hearing your names over and over” He chuckled, drawing his gaze down to the pokeballs again.  
  
Dave then pressed both pokeballs, having to reach out with his other hand as they grew into releasing shape before pressing both buttons and aiming them before him on the room.  
  
An intense red flash poured from both pokeballs, materializing into both pokemon captured within. The first one to materialize, as usual ready and willing to help on the fly, was Azura. The flying dragon pokemon squealed again with such an angelical tone that would’ve made anyone hearing beg for another trill of hers. Azura stretched out her massive wings before realizing the space within she was released would be substantially less if she did so, making her fold those wings in such a way that it simply seemed as a floating cloud with a long neck. The second pokemon however, a bit more reluctant and with her own reasons to take her time, materialized after. Zangy, the zangoose, appeared before her trainer standing up and facing her back at him. Her ears flicked once alongside with her tail as she gave a short glance at Dave, huffing before looking away.  
  
“It’s nice to see you too Zangy. I know, I know it’s been a couple of days, but after the act you put up with officer Jenny. You know I had to, otherwise if I let you do your thing you’ll never learn”  
  
Zangy turned her face ever so slightly back at Dave, baring her teeth for a second in a way that for Dave could only reassemble a mischievous smirk. The Zangoose afterwards shrugged closing her eyes, shaking her head slowly as if she had no idea about those events.

“Zangoooose” Zangy claimed in a soft tone of voice.  
  
Dave brought his left hand to the ridge of his nose, holding it as he shook his head and stretching his other hand up at Zangy.

“C’mon, help me up” He said, letting out a soft chuckle.  
  


The Zangoose rolled her eyes, reaching forward with her paw as she took a step towards Dave, still having a smug smile on her face. It may have been her species features, but she knew what she was doing and how to express it. Dave took her paw, getting lifted off the ground a few inches before feeling the floor come to contact with his butt unexpectedly and far too quickly. He grunted at the same time as Azura, knowing all too well these routines, giggled in her soothing voice.  
  
“Oh, so that’s how it’s going to be, huh? You’re a child, you know that? A child.” Said Dave, moving one hand to his rear and rubbing off where he landed. Still not giving up on having Zangy’s help, he reached his hand up again, this time giving a stern look up at the Zangoose and holding a more demanding tone of voice.

“Help me up” Dave said.  
  
To this the zangoose frowned slightly, her ears tilting back as she did not expect him to insist on the request. This time she reached closer, holding his hand with both paws, and leaning towards Dave to help him up. Dave, on the other hand, had other plans. He instead of getting up, lifted himself just enough to get leverage on his legs, pulling back at her paw to make her fall as well. This of course caught the pokemon off guard, making her stumble before holding herself with her free paw onto the chair in front of the only table in the room. The zangoose growled lowly, folding her ears back without letting go of her trainer’s hand. Dave, realizing of his mistake gulped thickly, knowing this wouldn’t look good for him at all. He knew Zangy was a temperamental pokemon, yet he insisted on pushing her buttons way too often to play around.  
  
“goose.” Zangy stated with an unamused and stern tone of voice.  
  
Suddenly, Dave found himself across the room, hitting the wall next to the door, thankfully, not as hard as he expected it to be. Zangy had used his own arm to slingshot him across the room, making use of her incredible strength.  
  
“Fa-air enough” Was the only thing Dave could mutter, rubbing his back as he now had to stand up by himself.  
  
Azura had her fun giggling, but as soon as she saw her trainer being dragged and tossed against the wall she couldn’t help but worry, letting out a soft coo as she floated closer to Dave.  
  
“Well at least I know one of you cares if I get hurt or not” Dave said jokingly towards Zangy, to which she replied with a single huff before turning around and bolting out of the small room to get fresh air and the scenery of the forest.  


* * *

The cold refreshing breeze grazed against the Zangoose’s blue streaked fur, who enjoyed the feeling thoroughly. She sat on a rock quite far from the Pokemon Ranger outpost only to get a break from everything that was happening. She knew something was up, and she could also sense the smell of blood and the other pokemon that had been back there in the room. Zangy, even if she didn’t like to admit it, knew Dave way too much to let his attitude slip as natural. Dave was worried, and she had picked that up, knowing he’d eventually inform both her and Azura about the problem they were in… again. It hasn’t been the first time she has found herself being released into a mess she had to help solving. Matter of fact, her previous life before meeting Dave had been quite the same; playing the bodyguard despite her not being the tallest, nor strongest of pokemon out there. Zangy sighed, looking down at her red claws, both curse and gift have been born with a color variation.

“Zang…” The pokemon softly let out.

For one, being this way has given her a preferred life when it came to human encounters. She never found herself having to battle over food nor attention. Male Zangoose also were more likely to approach her which she found quite a bonus whilst in the wilderness. On the other hand, her colors have shown her bitterness as well. Dave wasn’t the first trainer to have her, and if things really did go south, probably not the last. However, with Dave it was the first time she had a choice whether to be or not captured. Previously she would have to move quickly from place to place since sightings of her quickly made their way around human settlements, inevitably drawing trainer’s attention for a chance of adding such ‘rare pokemon’ into their collection.  
  
Zangy clenched her paws into a fist, recalling the word ‘collection’ with resentment and hurt.  
  


“Zangy! It’s time to go, come back here” Dave shouted out, walking out of the building followed shortly by Azura, who quickly ascended into the clear skies almost getting lost amongst all the blue. Azura loved the cold breeze after a storm the most, it was so energetically charged and clean; She couldn’t get enough of it as she soared through the air. Dave was suited with his pokeballs belt, his backpack, and a coat tied along his belongings just in case another storm happened during their travel. He had left the building locked, logging off any account in the monitor just in case, knowing if any poacher were to break in, they’d have useful information to their disposal otherwise.  
  
“Zangy!” Dave said again before feeling a familiar weigh on his shoulder. He chuckled, looking behind him to be met really close with Zangy’s emotionless stare.

The pokemon leaned further, giving a bite at Dave’s cheek before crouching and going on all four paws, taking the lead down the road that went to Verdanturf Town.

“ouch… always so rough.” Dave said, rubbing the mark off his cheek, knowing it has actually come a long way before earning those. Even if mildly painful, he held those actions affectionately.

The blinding flare of the sun casted upon the seemingly never-ending forest had brought itself to a heat peak, typical of noon hours. The wind helped to battle against the stinging heat but could only do so much. To strangers, the fact that despite heavy rains and humid environments just the day before seeming to have vanished as soon as the sun came out would have been odd. However, for the locals it was usual to have this sort of weather. Not only the sun, but the scorching magma underneath the soil were factors that quickly dried up even the worst of the storms, making of mud a quick hardening, and the conditions almost perfect for craftsmen to practice pottery or build out of clay.

After an hour of traveling calmly down the idle roads that cut across the volcano’s outskirts, Dave thought sensible to make a pit stop so both himself and his companions could grab a snack and some water. He trailed off the path, going towards a nearby lake which surely would provide of fresh water and soothing shadow to revitalize the spirit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a little shorter than expected, it's just transition to what comes next. I'm already working on it. As always, thank you so much for your support and reading all the way to here. If there's anything you'd like to point out as a mistake or any criticism, I'll take it gladly. All opinions are welcomed. Enjoy!


	3. Skip a Heartbeat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave opts to take a break and refresh himself and his team.

The sun slowly approached its summit, standing still above the hikers and travelers of the Hoenn region alike. Far up north, the weather seemed unchanged, although a few clouds disturbed the clear skies near a cluster of islands which seemed to have been stationary since the storm had quiet down. Shiny vessels could be seen above the ocean’s horizon, a fleet of seemingly bystanders standing on guard. The largest ship, named _S.S. Bellica_ was at the lead of the group, anchored to the depths of the ocean floor. The ship, being fairly simple from the outside, had an open deck in which several men and women stayed on guard gazing up at the imponent ruins of an old tower. At the bridge, just a couple of feet above the main accommodations, there was a man leaning on the railings as he used a small device to examine the tower.

“This must be the place. It’s been… too long. It has to be” He said to himself, adjusting a small dial on the side of the device. He wore a plain black outfit, fitted with bright green details. On his side there was a Ninetails, sitting quietly as it also looked up at the towering building.  
  
“Mr. H! The recon group has failed to advance further into the tower. It seems the pokemon gathering inside are stronger than we have predicted. They have retreated to avoid casualties. What are the new orders?” A woman said, hurriedly getting to the side of the man, standing still in a respectful manner. There was clear hierarchy amongst the ranks of the crew.  
  
Mr. H, having a smile on his face now, slowly put the device back into one of the pockets of his jacket. He gave a subtle chuckle before turning to look at the woman besides him. After a moment, he went for a tight hug at her, holding her close while smiling.

“We’re here” He added.

* * *

“You can keep on putting up with fun, but that won’t deter me y’know?” Dave said, having his head turned at the grumpy Zangoose who simply stood next to a tree, arms crossed. Dave was stripping off his clothes before slowly folding them and shoving them into a plastic bag. He took off his red jacket, jeans, and finally his heavy shirt. Having had to deal with pokemon up close, he had bought a special slash-proof shirt which would give him a better time against wounded creatures than going with the standard issued uniform. He held this last piece on his hands for a moment. Should he really take it off just to go for a swim? Yeah. Yeah that seemed the right choice at this time.  
  
After he folded the heavy shirt into a small square (being “small” an understatement) He tried sliding it into his backpack, but to no avail; It wouldn’t fit. Dave sighed, taking a seat on a dry log that had been trimmed enough by past hikers for being safe to sit without risking a splint. He put the shirt besides himself, starting to go through his belongings inside the backpack to see if the clothes would fit any better. He took out a couple of water bottles, a thin pouch which contained several restoration potions, a hard case with the writing ‘berries’ on top, and an old flute. He also took out a slim package which had a red cross on the middle. Inside there was an emergency aluminum blanket, a few sticky patches, and a special glue used to quickly seal wounds in the events of being too far from a hospital.  
  
Zangy was now leaning against a tree, her fur being slightly shifted by the rough bark, but not bothering her enough to actually do something. She rose her eyebrows, lifting her gaze up in the sky to try and see if Azura was anywhere to be seen. Azura has always been a free-spirited pokemon: When she wasn’t helping Dave into a raid of any illegal pokemon farm, or poacher’s hideout, she would be diving into the blue skies or playing along with other flying pokemon. Zangy knew Azura for a while now, though it always rubbed her the wrong way when Azura would just bail out instead of having quality time with Dave. On that note, the Zangoose redirected her gaze at her trainer, something changing on her grin. She didn’t seem angry anymore, but… melancholic.  
  
Even if it’s been over five years now, Zangy had always watched Dave from a distance. Both metaphorically and physically. She would go through his belongings when he took bathroom breaks, interact with his gimmicks, and sometimes even pick a few things up such as how to release a pokemon from its pokeball. Her thoughts suddenly trailed off to one of the first times Dave had yelled at her, though she couldn’t blame him. It was all as clear as it if just had happened.

…  
  
There she was, a mischievous and trembling younger Zangoose looking at herself in a mirror while sporting a tight fitted shirt along with a jacket. Sure, for the average person she would’ve looked silly, goofy, or have even drawn a few exhalations of ‘awwww’. She looked at herself, slowly rising her face to get a glimpse of her fur tucking into the shirt, making it very clear it wasn’t hers. She loved it. Her claws slowly ran along her sides, over her front, feeling where the fabric would stretch, and a few seams give to the pressure. Her long red claws would fidget with the exposed threads holding the piece of clothing together, making the moment all more exciting knowing how badly she had wanted to do what she was told not to. The clothes themselves were nothing special, a plain white shirt with a black leather jacket, which she tried sipping up only to end with a part of the zipper stuck to her claw and ultimately tossing the ripped piece away.

“Zanngg…” She purred out, her breathing slightly heaved by the overheating that came from her natural coat, a shirt, and a thick leather jacket.  
  
She gulped, letting her thoughts wander off to what no pokemon should think about while trying out her master’s clothes. Matter of fact, no pokemon should _ever_ even try out their master’s clothes. She knew the sound of the shower muffled into the background of her head could stop at any moment, interrupting with the slow but building guilty pleasure she was having. For a while now she had thought to do this, however, not while Dave was still in the house. She wanted to sneak into his room, try the clothing and leave, but the opportunity simply never came, and it always seemed too far-fetched to blame the act upon any other pokemon… being her the only pokemon alongside Dave. Zangy sighed now, letting out a heated breath as she felt her body start to react by the mere thought of those clothes not being clothes, but someone else. Someone holding her, enveloping her with their warmth and not letting from her figure. Feeling her fur, her body, her silhouette. Zangy gasped again, a paw trailing off downwards on her front, stopping at the very on of the shirt before grasping onto it. She felt her knees give as she looked back briefly to make sure she’d fall back onto the end of the bed and slide down to the floor. Now, sitting, she held the shirt harder, her claws easily piercing through the fabric before letting go and having her paw explore down further. The Zangoose looked up briefly, focusing her thoughts into the warm overwhelming feeling all around her that kept her on edge. Not only that, but her subconscious screaming to stop her endeavors before it would be too late, but… she was already at it, and not even the strongest of wills would deny the longing desire of hers.

Suddenly, the doorknob of the bathroom opened, a fast-entering warm mist filled the room within seconds, which instead of feeling warm, it felt as a bucket of iced water to the pokemon. Zangy knew she was in trouble, and therefore acted accordingly… by ripping off the clothes from herself, tossing them against the sheets behind her as they still clung to her claws before rushing towards Dave. Dave was looking at the floor, watching his steps and trying not to drip onto the carpet as he walked out of the shower, only to be greeted by a powerful paw at his cheek. The actions taken by the Zangoose was the only thing she could think of to avoid her training from noticing what she was doing.

“Ah! A-. What the ff… Zangoose! Get out! Get out of my room in this instant!” Dave snapped before even lifting his gaze to realize what was upon his now ruined bed.  
  
Thanks to the Zangoose trashing about, her claws had clearly made a mess of the newly bought blankets, leaving pieces ripped off, and a few slashes all over. This helped to hide the evident for the pokemon, though leaving a worst view to gaze upon. Dave rubbed his cheek off, looking over at his bed and finding the destroyed clothing along with his sheet. He instantly looked at the doorframe, in which a scared Zangoose stood, heart pounding against her fluffed-up chest as she held her paws up, claws intertwined.

“What’s wrong with you? If you really wanted a scratch pillar you should’ve told me, not RUIN my clothes! And my bed! What for?” Said an agitated Dave, holding still his towel, going over to take a look at the damage. Zangy didn’t flinch nor emit a sound, she was both embarrassed, excited beyond belief, and flustered to the core.  
  
“Get out Zangy, just. Just get out, okay? I’ll be out after I clean this mess… jeez. Arceus, why...” Said Dave, starting to pick up the pieces of fabric from the floor.  
  
The Zangoose felt her heart race even faster, bitting her lower lip out of nervousness. She knew she didn’t mean to hit him or even make this mess, but she also was happy she did so. After a moment she turned around, leaving the room and silently closing the door.  
  
…

“Hey, take a picture, it’ll last longer!” Said Dave between chuckles, snapping the pokemon out of her thoughts and crashing her mind right back into reality. He had clearly caught her daydreaming as she had her eyes on him, which made her flustering even worse.  
  
“Zang! Zangoose!” Zangy yelled back defensively, getting out of her relaxed pose against the tree as she held her arms down in protest.

“You are cute too, don’t worry” Dave said, jokingly as he stood up from the log before stretching his back by arching it slowly.

Zangy huffed, rolling her eyes as she walked forward a few feet away from her trainer towards the slowly flowing river before them. It has been a hot day, taking a swim wasn’t a problem for the zangoose, but doing so with her trainer. She was running out of ideas to be kept in her pokeball, and she knew that relying solely on her will to stop her feelings would be as useless as setting a wake-up alarm for a snorlax.  
  
Dave approached the shore of the river, kneeling next to it to check for a safe spot to step in. He sunk his hand on the crystalline liquid, feeling how the coldness stung the flesh after a few seconds, watching the refraction of the light casted on the rock and pebbles underneath. It has been a long time since Dave stopped to simply admire the beauty of the world he lived in, so long in fact his rushed life seemed to go by in a blur. He sighed, slowly getting out of his crouching position to sit at the edge of the shore, his legs dipping into the cold water. Dave looked up, breathing in the clean breeze, and breathing out a spec of his stress, relieved that he could at least allow himself breaks as these. His tranquility was suddenly interrupted by what seemed specs of ice crashing over his body, dripping down and wetting his underwear. Dave used his forearm to wipe away the water from his face, shivering ever so slightly as he dropped his gaze on the cause of the sudden interruption. There was Zangy, peeking her eyes form the water level while having her ears folded backwards, staring at him intently with her usual emotionless stare.

“Can’t really help it, can I? I guess two seconds of peace are too much to ask around you, am I right?” Dave said, sighing as he shook his head, deciding to drop down into the river before the air cooled him enough to catch a cold.  
  


The Zangoose sunk her head even more into the water as she saw her trainer approach her, probably for payback. She truly didn’t think this through, as the last thing she would need now is her trainer… her… her Dave to be close to her while wearing clothing that left nothing to imagination. Zangy huffed, scooting backwards as Dave made his way through the water towards her, lifting her body just enough to hiss at him as a warning, though he may even take it as a game which would make things even worse for her.  
  
“Don’t be shy now, you splashed all over me, it’s only fair… besides, your forehead seems dry!” Dave said between chuckles, sorting over the small holes in the bottom of the river, not wanting to fall in on accident.  
  
“Goose! Zangoose!” Zangy replied, flailing her arms underwater in a no pattern, soon noticing Dave wouldn’t even see it. She growled.  
  
Under the cold face given by the Zangoose, hardly readable by even the most skilled psychologists, there was another feeling. A mixture of anxiety, fear… she was freaking out. She couldn’t jump out of the water, well she could, but she wouldn’t want to. Zangy couldn’t force herself to deny she liked being this close to Dave, but she couldn’t get herself to commit to it either. All the while, Dave had made its way to just a foot away from the pokemon who was simply whining in place. Dave had started to wonder if maybe the water was too cold for a Zangoose.  
  


“Hey bud, you alright?” Dave asked, moving a bit closer to his pokemon partner, concerned about her well being, as usual.

On the other end, Zangy had heard him, but wasn’t _listening_. She was lost in her thoughts, on the wrong desire of hers, the burning sensation building up from the time he had shown affection for her. Who other has ever looked past her off colors and took their time to know her better? Who else but Dave, and she knew it. Zangy knew that deep down those strong feelings were caused by Dave being just _too nice_ to her, unlike any other human or trainer. It was wrong, and it was troubling. Underwater, she went back to fidgeting with her claws under the anxiety she was feeling, trying to hide herself and wishing the water would have been a thousand miles deeps for her to dive down to the bottom and never ever emerge.  
  
“Zangy, you’re starting to worry me. Did you step on something? Is there anything wrong?” Dave insisted, now genuinely feeling concerned about the Zangoose before him. He approached closer, stretching out his arm to wrap it around Zangy and pulling her against his chest in the process. For him, this was routine. He looked past her shoulder, trying to get a peek at her paws underneath. Maybe her tail was stuck on a rock? He leaned over, holding her up with one arm locked under her left armpit, and the other on her back. He used that free arm to gently hold her tail and move it to the sides, checking if everything was fine.  
  
Zangy could only stare blankly in shock, feeling a sudden rush of warmth fill her to the brim and numb her senses. She rested her face against Dave’s chest, her sight barely over  
shoulder, knowing that if it wasn’t for the water, Dave would have realized she was simply laying limp against him.

“Zangy, you seem fine to me. Tell me, what’s wrong? I can’t get a read on you, really” Dave admitted after a while in defeat, after yet another unfruitful attempt to know what was up with Zangy.

“Zang…” Zangy said in a tone so low and soft it couldn’t have been heard by Dave if she wasn’t right next to his ear.  
  
“What does that mean?” Dave said, letting out a gentle chuckle as he proceeded to slowly let go of the Zangoose.

Zagy felt Dave slowly loosen his grip on the embrace they shared for such a brief moment, which made her flinch. She felt her pupils constrict, her muscles tense just enough to snap her out of her shock and push her to act upon this new feeling. Slowly but surely, she drew her clawed paws up, almost against her will to not give into her raw emotions but failing completely as her arms ended up holding back onto Dave’s back. Dave tensed.  
  
“…” Dave was taken aback by this unexpected reaction of Zangy, not being sure if to feel better or worse about her state. He could only reciprocate by returning the tightness of the embrace as it was before, holding the pokemon against his chest. It was then when he started to feel how warm she actually felt, underneath her fur, despite the cold waters of the flowing rivers, her flesh must have been warmer than ever. It was a soothing feeling, and he couldn’t complain that much. Hardly had he received this sort of affection from Zangy, let alone during silly games. He closed his eyes, resting his cheek tenderly against the Zangoose’s head, feeling her fur against his cheek and taking a moment to listen closely to what seemed to be a rolling purr unfurling from the pokemon’s core. He may not have known what was happening to her, but he was an expert when someone needed comfort. His hand slowly ran down the back of Zangy, caressing her wet fur downwards to the base of her tail.  
  
“Zangoose…” was the only thing Zangy could mutter as she herself was unsure of what to feel at that moment. She felt both relieved and extremely nervous to be this close to Dave. She wanted this to last forever and end in an instant. She resolved to close her eyes and don’t think about it as the further she thought, the less she would enjoy it.  
  
The act itself lasted less than a minute, but once both pokemon and trainer held each other they remained in that position for ten times longer. However, their closeness and intimacy were soon interrupted by a hurried shriek coming from above, the voice easily recognizable as being the one of Azura, the flying dragon.  
  
“huh?” muttered Dave, opening his eyes slowly before rising his gaze up to the sky. He had to use the arm holding Zangy’s back to shield his eyes from the bright soon, looking at the darkened silhouette of Azura diving towards them. Sometimes must have alerted her. This made Dave turn his face around in an instant, looking over the shore further into the rows of trees and finally over the rock he has left his belongings. He needed to get his belt of pokeballs, knowing that one of them was not empty, and even worse, holding captive a wounded pokemon. He feared the worst: Have the poachers caught up to him? Did he foolishly leaded one of their members out of pure pity and kindness only to have that act be the reason he was being now ambushed? Everything came back to his mind, not giving him time to even process what just had happened with Zangy, letting go of her in the moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again, this is the third chapter done for the time being, but as usual with the entire work, is subject to further revisions. I hope you are enjoying the story so far (those who are reading, thank you!)


	4. Care to Explain?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a few minutes of bonding time, Dave felt his worry and concerns crash into him as cold as a bucket of iced water on his head. Hopefully nothing else will add to his mental load, right?

Gracefully and slowly the Altaria touched ground, her cloud-like wings folding back against her somewhat slim body, she looked ahead at her trainer and pokemon partner moving closer to the shore of the river. She let out a squeal, looking back behind her before looking at the belongings of her trainer, which once spotted, she decided to fetch them.  
  
“Azura, what’s wrong? Did you see something? This can’t be good, can it?” Dave asked, climbing off the waters onto the grass.  
  
Dave shortened the gap between Azura, the Altaria, and himself to get dressed as quick as possible. He took his backpack and the towel that were handed to him by the pokemon, rubbing his face before starting to dry off the rest of his body. Zangy, on the other hand, she jumped off the water and got on her four paws to vigorously shake the water off her own white and blue fur. She huffed, taking a quick glance at her master which she hoped would last longer… but they had work ahead. Well, she had. Zangy would usually take it upon herself to scout the area if something seemed fishy, which seemed to be the case now. Soon after drying off her fur, she darter into the woods without hesitation. Dave just watched, knowing her routine.  
  
“Tell me Azura, what’s the matter?” Asked Dave, now glancing over at the Altaria, putting on his ranger cargo shorts.  
  
Azura just looked at him without producing any sound, crooking her head a tad before looking back at the path that led to their outpost.  
  


“What’s the matter Azura? I… Did you see something?” Dave said, looking past his flying companion into the path. A few thoughts raced through his mind, but he decided to disregard them for the time being. “Maybe we should get back on track. The sooner we’re done with this, the sooner we can start dealing with those poachers” Dave said, getting dressed in a hurry.  
  
The dragon-like pokemon shook her head, walking close to Dave and nudging him so he could hurry up. It seemed by now that their best call would be to arrive at Verdanturf Town as soon as possible. The sun hadn’t moved much since the last time they stopped to rest, indicating it was barely past midday. If they moved now, they could arrive before the night came. Hopefully.  
  


Dave finished snapping the pokeball belt on his cargo shorts, making sure none was loose before looking up at the blue sky above them. There were no refreshing clouds around, nor wind blowing. The sun seemed stuck on place, as if it hadn’t moved even a bit during the time they took to rest.  
  
“It sure seems to be a great day… Such a shame things never go… as planned” Dave said, more to himself than to his companions.  
  


Azura made a quick squeal of approval before taking off into the skies again, this time with a huge breeze following behind as she departed. Dave suddenly found himself alone on the ground. Zangy was probably around, but not nearby at the moment and Azura… well, she just took off into the skies. Dave started walking towards the path that was drawn along the mountain skirts leading towards Verdanturf, watching his steps as he thought about what had happened the previous night. Everything was so… strange. Why would a wounded pokemon shelter on his outpost? Wouldn’t that be… dumb? What if it didn’t happen to be an outpost and it was the house of the same people trying to capture it? It didn’t make sense to him now that he thought about it. He couldn’t free the Lucario and ask the questions he needed answers to… Not in the current shape the pokemon was. He had to get the Lucario back in proper shape and see if they had any pokemon at the police station to aid with further interrogation. And what was the matter with Zangy? This was so unlike her. She just… What did she do actually? She was looking at him weirdly, then froze up the instant he touched her, and then when Azura came she just ran off. Dave just sighed, thinking it would be best to get one thing done at the time, which now top priority was to get that pokemon to a pokemon center.  
  
Swellows and Pidgeys cut through the quietness of the forest with their chirping and tweeting, scattering about in beautiful flight patterns before settling into the leafy tree cups. Oddly enough, there weren’t that many pokemon to be seen along the path Dave took, being mostly transited by humans which made it not so desirable for other species to use, besides, why opt for a dusty unshielded from the sun path, when pokemon could travel along the refreshing shade of trees?  
  
Dave kept his train of thoughts detached from their current situation, just taking a gander into what life was without all of the problems and _drama_ inherent of his profession. He thought about what other people would be doing at this time of the day, about artisans, trainers, league champions, or any other thought that could mentally take him away from the stressing task ahead. Deep down he knew why he was called into this shift, and that the pokemon he was holding in a pokeball on his belt was somehow linked to the whole investigation… from which he didn’t know much. Too much information classified to higher ranks. Hell, not even to the Rangers he would assume. He brought up the backside of his hand to wipe off a drop of sweat slowly creeping down his forehead, pooling and following the fall along his eyebrow. The day was hot.  
  


* * *

Far from where Dave was traveling, a trail of dust was lifted off the ground. In closer inspection, the dust was being generated by the passing of another off-road vehicle, an open cabin jeep very much as the one that crashed a day ago. On the vehicle there were four passengers, two men on the front and two women on the back, one of them holding onto the light bars of the cabin, looking ahead. She wore a leather jacket, cargo pants and numerous belts from which a few pouches and other gimmicks hung. Another thing that separated her from the group was a cast on her right arm, being held by a splint hung from her neck. She wore a pair of sunglasses, her short brown hair slightly waving into the air. Her grin seemed stern, as if she were focused on something, or really pissed off, to which may have been understandable given the events unveiling through the past week to her.  
  
“Vanessa, are you sure you want to do this? The boss said we should just… drop it.” The man on the co-pilot seat said, resting his arm back as he leaned backwards to look up at the young woman.  
  
“The hell with what the boss said. We’re getting that damned pokemon. Look ahead and shut up” Vanessa said, not even taking her time to look down at her crew member.  
  
The man and the woman on the back sitting next to Vanessa interchanged looks as she shrugged, knowing full when something got into Vanessa’s head, there was no talking her out of it. Maybe that’s why she was the one ordering around instead of following. The jeep took a turn into one of the various dirt paths that lead towards the skirts of the mountain, following through for as close as a mile, having to take turns and sort through some fallen branches and potholes in the dirt road. Eventually they made it into an outpost. Dave’s outpost.  
  
“Larry said so, and here we are. Clear the place, I want no rocks unturned.” Vanessa said in a commanding voice, jumping off the side of the jeep, landing on her right foot and kneeling out of unbalance. Her left foot still very sore and sensitive due to her recent injuries, which was clear by the external support braces put on her left leather boot. She probably had a few broken bones, but her rage outweighed any hint of physical pain. Vanessa grunted, limping slightly for a few steps before forcing herself to walk straight and with confidence as she usually would. _No signs of weakness_ she thought to herself when she walked pass her crew members who were already getting off the jeep. She was the first to step closer to the outpost, looking through the window and inspecting the place, as she knew it had been left alone not so long ago. Leaning against the window and using her left arm to block the shine from the sun, she took a peek inside, examining the small building.  
  
“It seems our guy left in a hurry, damn. If we’re lucky the bastard may even be in here!” She said, knowing she shouldn’t be getting her hopes up, but at this point… Why not?  
  
One of the men, the driver who wore a similar style leather jacket and jeans walked towards the door of the outpost, getting a knee down to be level with the lock. He took out from his pocket a small metallic tool from which several thin pieces of metal popped out. He inserted the thing pieces, wiggled it about and after a few seconds and some buzzing from the small tool, he heard a click. Turning the tool as if it were a key, the door opened for them, standing up before holding the door open for Vanessa.  
  
“Well, there’s no turning back now boss. Go ahead” The man said.  
  
“Thanks Victor. Stay put and bring the metal cases, we’re taking it all.” Vanessa said walking into the room, kicking down the chair in front of the desk, mostly out of frustration and anger than of any need. After walking a few steps into the room, she looked all over, frowning a bit by how cramped everything seemed to her. _How filthy_ she thought, moving slowly over to the desk and clearing the surface with the back of her left hand, pushing over the edge a few papers and pens. She leaned over, typing a few things on the computer to check the files in it. Maybe that could shed some light on whatever the rangers wanted to do in Hoenn, particularly in these forests and… _those assholes_. She stumbled upon a few folders that contained some of the information about warehouses and hideouts that belonged to their organization. She pursed her upper lip in disgust, turning around and sitting atop the desk. Vanessa tapped her fingers on the metallic surface, uneasy as she pondered on the next course of actions to take. Surely it wouldn’t be great to draw attention towards them by hunting down the Lucario that was now clearly in possession of the rangers. _Damned fucking animal_. She clenched her fist into a ball, her knuckles going white by the tightness before she stood up on a jump, going towards the metal locker on the opposite wall, next to the door of the bathroom. She opened its door, examining the contents and finding nothing that could actually be of some help. A map, some playing cards with a simplistic design of yellow and blue, and some pokemon outlines on their backside… which she threw to the floor before stepping over carelessly. Vanessa sighed, walking towards the exit and stopping at the doorframe, placing her left hand on her hip, tapping over a large pouch that hung off her belt. Quickly she turned sideways, leaning towards the monitor of the computer, withdrawing a large knife from the pouch and stabbing the glass as hard as she could. There was a dry thump as the screen lit up bright before turning off, flashing a few times before the actual computer under the desk made a sound. Her gaze was drawn towards the computer, which made her giggle at how stupid was of her to damage the monitor.  
  
“Of course… that’s where everything is”  
  
Outside of the outpost the men and woman left from the crew were leaning against the jeep, the woman having an unlit cigarette on her lips. She had her arms crossed, staring at the outpost unamused.  
  
“So, how mad are we talking now?” One of the men asked, looking ahead at the outpost as well, trying to guess what was Vanessa doing inside.  
  
There was a pause, a few plastic and trashing sounds could be heard from the inside of the outpost building before a loud smashing sound of crystal could be heard, followed by the computer being thrown through the main window of the building. The piece of technology crashed hard onto the ground, completely plummeting, and breaking into multiple pieces that scattered around.  
  
“Very… I’d say” Answered the woman of the crew, taking a lighter before getting it closer to her face. The warm color of the flame indicating the lighting up of her cigarette as Vanessa walked out of the outpost.  
  
“We’re done here” Vanessa said, before turning to her crew with a faint smile on her face.

* * *

Dave walked down the dusty road, feeling his toes starting to ache by the rubbery sole of his boots. He looked down for a brief moment, which he took to shield his gaze from the scorching heat of the sun above him. He breathed, slowly in, slowly out, just to feel as the air passed through his chapped lips, reminding him he had to hydrate himself. Dave stopped on the side of the path, taking shield from the heat under the shadow of a nearby tree, and sat on a rock. Placing his backpack down in between his legs, he bent down sliding the zipper open to reach its insides. He rummaged for a few seconds before taking out a bottle of water, moving aside away from his backpack before twisting its cap open and pouring some liquid on his hands. He ran his wet hands up his face, underneath his ranger cap as it fell off, and through his hair.  
  
“I do miss the comfortable chair in my outpost…” He said, eyes closed as he drew the bottle close to his lips to take a sip from the water.

Dave sighed heavily, feeling his muscles hold onto his skeleton way too tense, hearing some minor cracking as he slowly stretched on his sitting spot. It has been rough, even if he didn’t want to show this side of him around his pokemon partners, he was exhausted. For the last couple of days, he has been trying to track down these poachers. Slowly, bit by bit collecting information to eventually have enough to command a big blow into their organization. Having the location of one warehouse wouldn’t cut it. No, not for him. He wanted the whole organization done. He wanted the pokemon to stop being sold as slaves, sex objects, or just their weigh on meat for some luxurious illegal feast. No, he didn’t want this to keep on going. He didn’t want to scare away the heads of this organization and force them back into their burrow… He knew by a good source one of the actual keystone CEO of the poacher’s organization was here in… Hoenn. Here in Hoenn. Azura and Zangy would’ve been worried beyond belief if they knew he was into such deep waters. That’s why he was cautious about these poachers. _The other night_ he thought. When that strange, injured man arrived at his outpost. He thought they were onto him. Were they?  
  
Suddenly he felt heaviness on his left shoulder, as if a hand had just rested on it. Hand? It didn’t feel humanlike to Dave as he sharply turned around, shaken off his thoughts by the action just to be greeted by a white, blue streaked face. Zangy.

“Arceus! Don’t you k… h.. You scared me Zangy” Dave said as his breathing slowly came to a halt before starting to go back to a regular pace. He sighed.  
  
Zangy, as usual didn’t even mutter her name to answer to her trainer’s concerns. She just seemed to have twisted the corner her mouth the sightliest bit just to form a small and brief smug grin at Dave’s reaction. She loved teasing him, and at that she was the best. Zangy took a step forward to stand by her trainer.  
  
“Look, I’m just very preoccupied with the state of theeee…” _Shit_ thought Dave, memories crashing back into him as he realized he did NOT tell either pokemon about the injured Lucario hanging from his belt. He gulped, knowing that he had just a few seconds to salvage the situation before it was too late.  
  
“ehh uh, the weather of the region. It pains me that pokemon have to endure such changing environments, mostly because some may be injured on their own. I just wish I could do more.” He said, relaxing his pose before turning his face to the side to smile up at Zangy.  
  
Zangy didn’t have any of it. She knew Dave long enough to know he was the worst liar the world could have ever conceived. She was sort of proud about that… it was cute. She knew he couldn’t bring himself to blatantly lie about something without having an internal struggle between mind and body. His mind was telling him how to lie, but his body… heh, Zangy just knew his body… beautifully toned body, strong yet caring arms, and just th-  
  
Zangy just looked at him, ears twitching and moving back for a second as she shoved those thoughts to the back of her head where nobody would ever find them.

  
“Goose” She spoke in a coarse voice, giving her trainer a nod. It would be best to simply play through his shenanigans.

Dave internally sighed in relief that his lie had come out clean to Zangy. For a second there he thought he would have had to come with a different excuse if not the truth right away to those demanding deep blue eyes. He stood up from the rock, patting the dust off his shorts and feeling the thud of his hands on the heavy fabric. Crouching down Dave took the empty bottled water and put the plastic inside the backpack to dispose of it later in Verdanturf Town. He felt refreshed after drinking water and having some time to simply think about his worries, having the shade of a tree and a gentle breeze that started blowing not long ago was also a bonus. As he finished packing up, he couldn’t help but feel a pair of eyes fixed on him. The usual, of course.  
  
Zangy stood there as she looked at Dave. The very much close and intimate encounter at the river before was just… mind shattering for her. She still could feel the faint tingle on her skin that would have given her goosebumps all over again just to picture it on her head. Dave’s hands were on her, _all over her_. She just had brief moments of deep ponder in which she thought what could’ve been if she did actually make a move. Zangy thought over and over the things she would’ve done to and with Dave. Turning around, wrapping him with her fur, holding him with her strong arms, floating up to his level and just give into his dreamy lips. Feel his care and love as if it was the first time, feel his heartbeat pounding against her own chest, his hands, oh… his hands around her tail, her ears, her… _her._ Just now, watching him she wished she could let out her passion into a growl, dive down and tackle him right there and then. Pin her prey down, her Dave. Be in control, and just kiss him as if her life depended on it. She thought about ripping open that silly ranger outfit, feel his warm body against her claws, against her fur, feel his softness, his toned muscles, his squishy bits she knew he wasn’t proud of, but oh did it make him just more unique and workable. She would let him do anything, anywhere, she would’ve been his to have, and Dave would’ve been hers to enjoy. She couldn’t help it anymore, that hug, that oh so intimate hug was the last straw to bend her steel willpower into a malleable putty that was only for _his_ artisan touch to mold.  
  
“Earth to Zangoose, I knew you liked to check me out, but come on now… this is ridiculous, even for you” Said Dave with a long hearty chuckle as he waved a hand in front of the daydreaming Zangoose.  
  
Zangoose freaked out.

In her own way, of course.  
  
Dave had to start walking again with a visible red claw mark on his face. And if it wasn’t for her fur, Zangy would have had to explain why she was blushing beyond healthy measures.  
  
Back into the path, having had some minutes to pass and the waters to settle, Dave turned around to look at Zangy. She stopped as he did.  
  
“Zangy, about the river and… well… what just happened. Do you think there’s something you may want to tell me? I know you enough y’know?” He said, breaking any hopes for the pokemon to simply walk out of this one unscathed.  
  
“Z… Zangoose.” Maybe it was time for some explaining to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I'm really sorry this took me just uh... so long to get out. It's sailing, don't worry... for those who are still reading. Thank you very much, I truly appreciate whoever made it this far and cares to read this little part of nonsense. There's more to come of course, and I have planned some interesting events to unfold once in Verdanturf Town. You'll see. Oh, and if it isn't clear already, ANY comment is appreciated! Truly! Suggestions, critique, even if negative... Just let me know. Thanks again, and have a wonderful day you all!


	5. Four and a half

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes a smell takes you back in time, or a feeling, or a certain someone. Sometimes you never need to look back as your past simply drags along with you. Moving forward is easier said than done.
> 
> Warning: Depiction of graphic injuries and blood ahead. Thanks for reading!

The deafening sound of a blinking fluorescent light filled the venomous silence of the room, this being dark and cold. Cracks across the old concrete showed signs of water seeping through every now and then, the cold moss creeping up from underneath the floor into the metal cages rusted by the lack of maintenance of even movement. Contrasting to what seemed to be cold steel and concrete was the figure of a shadowed person, sitting on a cheap excuse of a chair. The man in question was old, deep grooves demarked the sign of age on the skin of his face, and his tiresome snoring sung along the stinging clicking of the fluorescent tubes to form this _death sentence_ of a symphony. The room wasn’t bigger than a garage, yet it was piled up to the ceiling with cages so close to each other that one would’ve thought they were a single welded structure. Inside of those cages were pokemon that sat, slept, or simply stayed there as silent as the hurtful steel keeping them caged. With further inspection one could see the various pokemon inside the cages, a few not moving at all and laying limp inside of their cramped spaces. Whatever warmth their bodies would provide quickly fell through the spaced bars of the cages, getting lost into the bast coldness of the humid room.  
  
The man, or guard if you’d like, had a weapon resting on his lap, hands over the hardwood that made most of its body. It was a hunting rifle, probably not meant to kill the pokemon, but harm them enough to keep them in line. A sound could be heard coming from one of the walls of the room, this sporting a different pattern on its metallic surfaces going across horizontally instead of vertically. The metal gate shifted a bit before quickly rolling up open, letting the whole room be lit by a warm shine coming from the setting sun. Little could be seen by the eyes of whoever was inside the previously grim and dark room as the blinding light of the sun only let a few silhouettes through. A few trucks could be seen outside along the figures of many humans possibly waiting to take the captive pokemon to their final destination, or another warehouse.

“Wakey wakey sunova bitches!” A man walked in, holding a baton with a shiny metallic end. He moved casually, almost enjoying a tad too much the sight before him.  
  
“Today’s the day, I know… I know you’ve been longing to get out, and yeah. Yeah, some of you well… are on better luck. Others, not so much. Let’s be honest, you all saw this coming you little glorified insects…” The man spit on the concrete, scrubbing off the spit with his beaten leather boot. He walked pass the cages holding the baton against the bars, and thus making a loud metal on metal sound finally get a reaction out of the pokemon. They squealed and covered their ears… those who could.  
  
Agitated and awakened by their captor, the pokemon slowly looked at him as he walked by. He stopped in front of a set of cages, crouching as he looked at the pokemon inside, poking his baton inside to lift the small tag that was strapped on its ear. The pokemon was a small bunnelby, curled up into a ball. It didn’t move. The man poked the baton again, nudging the pokemon with the baton as he smirked.  
  
“Would you look at that…” He chuckled “It seems one of your friends doesn’t want to wake up.” He paused, standing up before slowly turning around to look at the pokemon, earning looks of fear and pain from the creatures in cages. They knew what was coming, and they hoped the little bunnelby would already be in the protecting fields of Arceus...  
  
A sudden loud noise could be heard as the man holding the baton kicked the set of cages, not moving them much due to how heavy each were. The bunnelby didn’t budge.  
  
“Sleeps like a rock! Seems I’ll have to be more persistent!” He yelled, placing his hands on the bars of the upper cages before giving a hard kick at the cage in which the bunnelby was, making the small bundle of fur move a little. He smiled. The man then proceeded to crouch again, holding his baton up before flicking a small switch on it. The metallic end of the baton zapped as it got electrified by the activation of it. He introduced the baton in between the bars, pressing it against the limp body of the bunnelby as it instantly made a loud zapping noise that was held for a few seconds as he pressed the baton against the pokemon. The smile on his face soon turned into a worried look, turning off the switch in the baton and sighing. He stayed on his crouching position, holding the baton by its paracord wrist attachment while looking at the now verified corpse of the bunnelby. As if it were an explosive reaction, his frown drifted quickly into an angered look, making him stand up from his position and looking out at the open gate. He beckoned one of his crew members to come.  
  
The young man called to the scene was already holding a plastic bag and a handful of keys. After fidgeting with the keys and finding what he wanted, the young man crouched in front of the bunnelby cage, opening it and taking the corpse of the pokemon by a leg, to which he was stopped by a tap on his shoulder.  
  
“Hand it to me.” The other man said, a harsher tone now in his voice.  
  
The young man obeyed, handing the dead pokemon to the man behind him before leaving the room and walking outside.  
  
“So. This is what happens.” The man said holding the bunnelby higher by its leg, making a very thin trail of blood to drip from its maw down its fur before staining the already wet and cold concrete. “This is what fucking happens!” The man said, holding the dead pokemon against one of the cages in which a cowering panpour shivered in fear. The pokemon was in clear malnourishment, its chest weakly but rapidly moving as it breathed both frightened and shocked by the sight of its dead cell companion.  
  
“You all did this!” The man screamed, dropping the bunnelby on the concrete with a soft thud before kickin it into the plastic bag. Silently and quickly the same young man came over, pulling the rest of its body inside before tying up the open end and taking it out of the room.  
  
“You pieces of shit! You all did this!” The man said again, punching the cell of a semi-conscious snivy. The pokemon hissed faintly, saying its name weakly as it retreated further back into its cage. The man after looking at the bunch of scared pokemon made his way to the guard who was now wide awake, still loosely holding the weapon on his lap. He looked at the old man and said:  
  
“It’s loaded?”  
  
“Always boss”  
  
“give.”  
  
The old man stood up slowly, handing the weapon to the man demanding it, holding it up to inspection and making sure there was a round loaded in the chamber. Suddenly he turned around, having his gaze meet with the defiant squinting eyes of the Snivy that previously had hissed at him. A few vines slowly creeping from behind the neck of the slim pokemon, threatening to dart out at him. At this point, a simple whine would have triggered the inevitable. A sudden sharp loud noise could be heard followed by the agitated cries, hisses, and roars of the different pokemon witnessing the scene. It seemed as if the whole room were suddenly enveloped on a high-pitched ring, that could only be sung along the tone of death. The Snivy let out a tearing shriek, getting pushed back by the shot which pierced its body through. Shaking and trying to hold itself against the metal bars the Snivy quickly slumped down against the bars that made up the surface in which it stood. Looking down to a frightened and sobbing Scorbunny the Snivy could faintly see its fur getting stained by some liquid. The Snivy’s blood. Soon the grass-type pokemon stopped breathing, laying limp as the noise of the other scared pokemon grew louder.  
  
“I’ve got more rounds, better shut the fuck up!” The man said, holding the weapon up as he primed the bolt, an empty case falling and twinkling against the floor. He looked at the terrified pokemon, silence now filling the room as they simply stared back at him… the ones who could.  
  
From a larger cage near the gate of the room a soft scratching could be heard before a growl started flowing out. This caught the man’s attention, who walked towards the cage, holding the gun pointed at it.  
  
“You want seconds, huh!” He said, suddenly lurching forward as he pressed the barrel of the gun right in between the bars, hitting the pokemon inside. A clawed paw held the barrel, yanking it aside and holding it in place forcefully as the shocked man stared into the furious almost glowing sky-blue eyes of the creature inside. As the pokemon stepped partially into the sunlight coming from the outside its messy white fur could be seen, a blue zig-zagged pattern across its body and the forearms of the pokemon. It looked intently at the captor, squinting its eyes as it snarled its name.

“Zangoose!” The pokemon said, pulling the gun into the cage once more, making the man snap out of his trance as he started to pull back out.  
  
The only sounds filling the room were now the rumbling of the metal bars, the weapon against it, and the struggles from both pokemon and human to get hold of it. The rest of the pokemon were silent, watching, just the way the old man was, now wide awake. Suddenly, the man could be hear to let out a loud grunt, snatching the gun away just enough to press the end of the barrel against the pokemon’s skin quickly followed by a loud ringing and staggering sound of the firearm going off. The Zangoose let out another pained growl, holding its clawed paw to the wound on its side, feeling the blood quickly stain what was once pearl-white fur.  
  
“Let’s see if _that_ teaches you, you filthy bitch!” Said the man, quick to chamber another round, holding the weapon firmly and putting it against his shoulder, aiming to the pokemon’s chest.  
  
The Zangoose looked back, anger on its eyes as it ears folded backwards. There was no getting out of there if not in a plastic bag. The men and women outside were staring into the garage, just waiting for it to be done so they could move forward. Their eyes… their eyes showed nothing but emotionless feelings, it was simply another day in the job.

The man smiled, getting ready to fire. “I’ll give it to you, you’re brave… but being ballsy in a human word will always only earn you a one-way trip six feet under.”  
  
After a moment of silence that lasted no longer than a second but felt like an eternity a third loud gunshot could be heard from the place. The men and woman waiting outside suddenly getting out from their relaxed position and looking in shock forward, their gaze slowly moving towards the young man that had brought the plastic bags before. The young lad had on his hand a weapon, a pistol which he had just fired. The shot going straight through the man’s head, the man who held the Zangoose at gunpoint. He stumbled sideways before collapsing into the floor, the gun falling as well as blood started to quickly pool around his head, running along the bottom of the cages before meeting with the previously murdered Snivy’s blood. The Zangoose looked out, dizzy and weak by the gunshot received before as it caught a very faint purple glow on the eyes of the young man.  
  
Before any man or woman could react, a shriek could be heard from the skies as a Charizard landed in front of the group of poachers, menacingly shooting flames up in the air. Following its lead, a group of shielded police officers came to the scene, holding bright flashlights at the poachers as they yelled “Pokemon Rangers! Hands up! To the ground!” between other orders. The poachers were outnumbered as other pokemon sporting small jackets with badges or bandanas signaling being part of the Pokemon Rangers showed up. One of them, a Gardevoir which still held her hand up as a glowing aura emanated from her body, came from the crowd, and walked towards the young man. The aura disappeared just as the glowing of his eyes, the young man falling to his knees and dropping the gun, confused by the lights and the yelling of both Police officers and Pokemon Rangers. The officials were quick to put under restrains each one of the poachers, as pokemon rangers and Rangers went into the garage, cutting the bars and releasing the pokemon.  
  
A young man part of the Rangers rushed towards the cage of the Zangoose, quickly cutting the lock open before moving in and tending its injuries.  
  
“Quickly! Get the Blissey here!” The man said, holding a blooded hand against the Zangoose’s wound while he kept the pokemon against himself to keep the warmth.  
  
“Goose…” The pokemon replied, looking up at the Pokemon Ranger, still fearful but knowing they weren’t there to harm them. Maybe things could be better from now on.  
  
Away from the doings of the police and Pokemon Ranger were two people resting against a police van.  
  
“Well Sylvia, I threw you a bone. I hope this irons out our… differences. My business isn’t of you or the Pokemon Rangers to intervene. I hope that’s clear. I’ll give you more leads of these brute small fry… Just remember we are on the same side of history here; we both want to keep peace between pokemon and humans.” The man spoke. He wore a jet-black overcoat which had bright green trimming on its seams. It seemed expensive.  
  
“John. This doesn’t really change what you do. It’s illegal, you know that, but…” The woman sighed, looking down at her own officer outfit, decorated with a few ribbons and additional badges due to her rank. “I can’t deny you have been of real help for us… and deep down… I know you mean no harm. You act away from the law, but for good causes. I respect that. I’ve told you; we could offer you a deal to work with us, get back in the force… do more” She said the last words with a bit of hope in her voice.  
  
“I do enough. I’ll keep you up to date, that’s all I can give you. You know what I think about the police… and who you work for. It’s not going to happen” He said, looking ahead as he saw a man carry a white and blue pokemon on his arms. “These Rangers. Your boss is wasting their potential.”  
  


* * *

The sun was already getting closer to the horizon as Zangy sat on a bench inside of a police station. She looked to her side down the corridor to see Dave talk with an Officer. The trip towards Verdanturf Town had been exhausting… both physically and mentally. She looked down at her clawed paws, her eyes slowly trailing towards the fur on her body. Her claws followed. She felt her own skin before stopping at a certain small patch of skin that wouldn’t grow fur anymore. It wasn’t bigger than a bean sized patch, but that was enough to remind her how close she was from… If it wasn’t for people as the ones working in this Police Station. Zangy sighed her name softly, looking back up at Dave as he walked back towards her, having a concerned look on his face. Bad news maybe?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everybody! Thank you very much for the kind comments I have read, they truly make my day. I decided to drop this small shorter update sooner, just for the sake of it. I hope you enjoy this, and thanks again for reading!  
> As usual, any comment or criticism is encouraged, it makes me be better so don't hold back.


	6. Cocked

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave makes his way into Verdanturf town, realizing his trip may have to last longer due to new information given by the police. In the meantime, Zangy, Azura, and himself decide to blow off some steam by visiting the center of the town.

* * *

“Officer Jenny fed me in with some new and… unexpected information. It seems we’ll be stuck in Verdanturf for a while. We may have to rest at a hotel, I was thinking Green Leaf hotel” Dave said, his eyes wandering back as if to remember a few pieces of information. “I know it may be a bit more accommodated to what we are used to, but we deserve some proper rest.”

Meanwhile Zangy had been hardly listening to what Dave had been saying. Her sight was focused solely on her bright red claws softly sinking into her fur as she looked down at herself. Her thoughts wandering into other directions, thinking about how easy everything would be if she could actually speak the human language and tell Dave everything about these _freak-outs_ of her. She could, she would, she knew she would tell him about it, she’d tell him everything and all of her foggy thoughts would disappear, right? She had to. Zangy kept on slowly squeezing her fur, feeling her own claws slightly graze against her skin underneath. What was with all this secrecy between Dave and herself? Not to mention… Well, Azura must’ve known what’s happening. She wouldn’t be so carefree otherwise. That’s not very _Azura_ of her.   
  
Suddenly Zangy had to lift her gaze up to Dave as he snapped his fingers in front of her face, her ears folding back quickly.   
  
“Understood? Zangy, I want you to be clear with all this, alright?”  
  
Zangy gave Dave a very confused look, mostly because she wasn’t really listening to whatever information he was sharing. She had no idea whatsoever what was so important she had to know.   
  
“You _are_ a child sometimes Zangy, you know that?” Dave said, letting out a soft sigh before chuckling. “Alright, quick rundown for the second time. We will stay until the Pokemon Center is back online, it seems the storm had caught by surprise the whole town and now they have a transformer blown up thanks to some tree branches.” He took a pause to sit down next to his pokemon, placing his hand on her paw probably to soothe her out a bit. He knew that look she had, and he had to let her know she wasn’t in trouble.   
“The bad news don’t stop there. The main road leading to Verdanturf town is also blocked, a landslide… they said. Equipment can’t go out, nor in which is a shame. Most police officers are working on that, I asked if we could help but due to our position in the forces, we were better off here taking care of the town should anything happen. The police officers are aware of the poacher’s activity in the area, and they fear an attack to the Pokemon Center since it has no power. Alright? I’ll have Azura scout the area before it gets dark, then we’ll head out for a meal and get some rest.”  
  
Zangy nodded, looking down at Dave’s hand resting on her paw. She could feel his warm skin upon her fur, would she dare take his hand and squeeze it? She wouldn’t of course, much less in public. Hell, even in a police station, that wouldn’t really look good on both. Matter of fact, Dave doing this was already pushing the limits… and it was cute. She loved how far Dave would go to care about her, to soothe her, to… maybe. Zangy stood up, not looking at Dave but giving a firm and reassuring “Goose!” as she walked off down the corridor towards the lobby of the police station.   
  
The sky had a very beautiful purple and orange tint, slowly fading darker and darker as the sun sunk in between the tall buildings of Verdanturf town. The treetop bouncing off the light to give a very warm and soothing atmosphere as the night slowly creeped from behind, showing its first signs to come out as most flying pokemon returned to shelter within the leaves of trees. The air was dry and cold to the touch, a hint of electricity could be perceived by the most sensitive creatures which indicated whether a storm was soon to come or had already passed. Down the paved road there were a few light poles which lead into the city. On one side, open patch of grass and tall grass which eventually grew thicker and more copious as they turned into the forest outskirts of the mountain from which they had come. Zangy walked out of the police station shielding her sight with her furred forearm from the strong bright sun shafts shining at her which were now at eyesight level. To avoid further looking ahead she turned around, looking behind her only to find Azura calmly floating a few meters behind. The dragon type pokemon had her head tucked back into her cloud-like feathers just for a second before turning her head to look at Zangy.   
  
Azura let out a very gentle and long chirp, extending its length as she floated closer to the standing Zangoose. She smiled brightly at the white-blue pokemon, letting out another soothing cry followed by a slow nuzzle of her head against Zangy’s fur. Azura could tell Zangy had been under some distress lately and needed a more comforting face next to her, which she would gladly give whenever needed. Zangy on the other hand looked up at Azura’s ministrations before deciding to let the weight of her body upon the floating pokemon. Both pokemon sighed, feeling a bit of relief which contrasted with the feeling of not knowing certainly what Dave was hiding from them.   
  
“Get a room you two” A voice said.   
  
Voice coming from a woman leaning against the flat concrete wall of the Police Station. She wore a Police uniform, blue shirt with a red stripe down the arms, blue pants with its corresponding white lines going down the front as they met the shiny black boots. She lifted her gaze, letting out a half-hearted laugh as she approached both pokemon. Zangy and Azura had separated as they looked at the officer.  
  
“No, no, I was joking pals. It’s fine, I’ve just never seen pokemon act wel… like humans do. I mean, I have, but not this way. Is everything alright? I came to the conclusion there’s something troubling you both, right?” Said the officer, placing her hands on her hips on a rather relaxed pose.  
  
Zangy took a step towards the officer, as if she wanted to say something before her initiative was interrupted by the opening of the sliding doors of the police station. Dave came out, waving behind him as he shouted.

“Sure thing officer! I’ll keep my eyes peeled in case I see something, you have a good one!” Said Dave, quickly turning around to speak. “Would you believe that? I guess the silver lining seems better and better, there’s a room open for law enforcement and associates” He said, pointing at himself and both pokemon still not turning to see the woman watching him. “Which is great! We are associates so, don’t mind if I do” He finished between chuckles as he turned around, stopping at the sight of the officer before him. “Hi” He said.   
  


“I assume you’re their trainer, right?” The officer said.  
  
“Companion, uh. Co-worker. Yeah, well, we work together on the same level as in no one over the other and, y’know…” Dave said scrambling words out of his mouth but stopping at he saw the officer in front of him rolled her eyes.   
  
“Officer Jenny, but between you and I, you can call me Sarah, colleague.” Sarah said with a giggle.   
  
“Nice meeting you Sarah, we were just reporting an issue here at the station… I’m sure they’ll give you the details later. There are poachers in the zone” Dave said, changing his tone to a more worried one as he spoke.

“I understand.” Sarah said, nodding as she gave Dave a warm smile. She straightened out her clothes before adding. “Well, I’ll be off your hair Dave, thanks for keeping an eye out” Sarah then walked into the Police Station, getting greeted by the other officer inside.  
  


Dave looked through the glass doors of the Police Station, staring at Sarah as she went about with her duties. He was a bit taken aback by the recent encounter. After a pause he shoved those thoughts behind, turning back to his pokemon companions and smiling at them. He let out a deep sigh, crossing his arms against his chest giving a crooked smile to both Azura and Zangy.   
  
“What’s the plan girls?” He asked, leaving both pokemon to their thoughts. It would be wise to grab something to eat for all of them. It’d be a long week ahead.

* * *

“…And he told me, _Dave, that’s not how you should manage a business. I’m telling you; aggressive approaches take the cake, people don’t know what they want until you shove it down their throat._ Which I don’t really agree with, so I told him. I mean, what else could I do?” Dave said as he took another bite of the hotdog he was holding, calmly walking through the mildly crowded boulevard. “I do have to give credit where it’s due… the man knows how to sell it. I hope he’s doing alright…” He added before taking another bite.   
  
The main streets at the center of Verdanturf Town were ‘packed’ by its own standards. It was soon to happen a blood moon and people were on a feisty mood. Walking and floating alongside Dave were Zangy and Azura namely, seemingly enjoying themselves with the show of the store’s lights, colorful decorations and lively music playing to attract customers in. Zangy was holding a skewer up to her smirked grin, trying to get some pieces of whatever she ate from between her fangs. Azura on the other hand had rather not try foreign food and was chewing on some belue berry, probably from a plastic bag that was attached to Dave’s backpack for Azura’s easier access. The bag had a golden ribbon and a black sticker with golden letters, seemed like an expensive berry.

The blackened sky starting to get generously dotted by bright shiny stars all over was the only source of light coming from above, the new moon was nowhere to be seen which gave a pretty relaxing chill to the whole ambience. It was a peaceful night, ready to be filled with whatever mood humans or pokemon may inject into it. Azura swallowed the bite of berry she had been munching on, lifting her gaze above the crowd as she heard the cries of some pokemon ahead; her gaze was met with two Mankey fighting and wrestling over a bag of snacks, trashing around and rolling on the street as people made way for their doings. There was a kid amused by the scene holding another identical bag on his hands, this one being already open as he ate from it. Azura put two and two together and shook her head, letting out a soft soothing cry. Something about the Mankey fighting like that made her inner instincts to kick in and made her start stalling behind Dave and Zangy. Dave didn’t notice, but Zangy being far more perceptive turned her head around, letting out a soft growl as she motioned at Azura with her shoulder. This made Azura snap out of her thought, quickly joining back and taking another big bite off the belue berry, giving a gentle smile-like grin back to Zangy to which the white furred pokemon answered with a shrug.   
  
“Zangy, Azura, I know why you both are quiet, and I plan to answer all of your questions back at the hotel room, but please. Can’t we enjoy the night?” Dave suddenly interrupted the couple of pokemon, turning around as he stopped on his tracks. He held on one hand the wrapper of the hotdog.   
  
Zangy and Azura looked at each other for a second before nodding, Azura being the most affectionate one quickly scooting closer to Dave and wrapping him on her fluffed up cloud-like wings. Dave chuckled, pushing the velvety cloud away the best he could.  
  
“Aight, aight! I get it, sorry for asking. Jeez” He said with a chuckle. “Since we’re here, why don’t we go get some souvenirs? Something nice, huh? Maybe a ribbon with a local flower?” He said eyeing Azura, knowing her likes. The suggestion worked wonders as Azura quickly moved back, perking up.   
  
“Maybe… You know what? I know there’s a special clothing store that makes accessories for pokemon. I know you don’t _need_ it, but heh, maybe you’d like to look around Zangy?” Dave then added, looking back at Zangy as he put a cautious hand on the pokemon’s shoulder. Zangy looked at his hand, feeling her heart about to start pumping before she managed to stop that train and settle herself down. She gave him a warm smile, nodding and grabbing his hand before moving it away, as usual. She walked past Dave, turning around and saying her name once more, in a higher pitch.   
  
“Hurry? Woah, you really want that, don’t ya? If I knew I could’ve bought you off, I’d be doing this for years now!” Dave joked, following close to Zangy as Azura floated behind.   
  


* * *

The first store Dave started to slow down to finally stop in front of was a small shack. A large display pane on the front with a door on its side. It was a single room lit up by a modest looking lightbulb on the ceiling. On the display there could be seen some pokemon plushies wearing different pieces of clothing and colorful ribbons. There were textured ribbons, multicolor, glittery ribbons, and even some made from treated nylon to have a pearlescent effect on them. To the shock of both Dave and Zangy, Azura was the first one to float into the store, pushing the door open as it went with its classic bell sound. She went directly to stare at some racks on the wall, which contained an assortment of small colored wooden chests, a velvet lining, and sitting neatly on top some ribbons which had either small precious stones on the middle, crystals, or even metal badges. They seemed the top of the line the store could offer. Behind the rustic wooden counter there was an old lady, she had a gentle smile on her face, as well as deep grooves indicating the time she has spent alive in this earth. Her eyes droopy and almost seemed closed by the no longer firm skin of hers, although it gave her a wise elder vibe. She wore a burgundy robe with brown accents, as long as silver trimmings across the seams which matched to the long ribbon tying up her silver hair into a top knot. As Azura lurked over the defenseless ribbons, Dave made his way towards the counter, passing by some square bins and boxes full with several different loose ribbons.   
  
“Hi, my name’s Dave, we’re looking around… well, she is” Dave said, motioning to Azura as she looked at a white box which contained a royal purple glittery ribbon with a small blue crystal on its center.   
  
“Welcome.” The old woman said, stretching her hand out with her palm facing upwards. Dave seemed confused for a moment before speaking again.   
  


“Oh uh, how much each? I can pay upfront if that’s… needed” Dave said, chuckling.   
  


“Your hand, young trainer.” Said the woman.   
  
“Uh…” Dave looked behind himself, a bit weirded out, but to not disrespect the old lady he obeyed, stretching his hand out so she could take it.   
  
Zangy, who was looking from the front door as she leaned against it, had her ears perk up by the old woman’s request. She walked in a bit, curious. Azura was totally lost to her own doings as she stared at three chests undecisive.   
  
“Well ah… Is everyt-” Dave couldn’t finish as he was interrupted in the act.   
  
“Your pokemon, no. Your family. There will be a time you will have to open up and… let them in young man.” The old lady said, soon adding as she put her other hand tenderly on top of Dave’s while holding it with her other hand. “Don’t… rush into conclusions, yet. There will be a time for everything and…” She suddenly stopped, moving her fingers down the tips of Dave’s fingers. She sighed. “What has to happen, will happen. I’m sorry.”   
  
Dave was beyond weirded out by the _readings_ of the old lady, so he quickly withdrew his hand. Zangy was already by Dave’s side as he did, stepping over in a protective manner.   
  
“Zangy, it’s alright, don’t…” Said Dave, knowing the impulses of his friend.   
  
“She is quite the talker, isn’t she? May I?” The old lady added, to both Dave’s and Zangy’s surprise the old woman stretched her hand out, this time to the pokemon. Zangy looked back at Dave, to which he gave her back a shrug not knowing what to do but… at the end, it was harmless. Maybe even tradition around here. He nodded. The woman took Zangy’s paw, holding her claws into her hands as she felt the sharp digits of the furred companion. She gasped softly, letting out a very faint snicker as she lifted her gaze up to the pokemon. Zangy looked afraid, her ears flattened backwards by the woman’s reaction.   
  
“Don’t worry about a thing, he does too” The woman said, giving a reassuring smile at the Zangoose.

The three were suddenly interrupted by an abrupt sound, wood crashing onto the wooden planks on the floor. Azura being the source of such sound as she tried holding two wooden chests against her front, whilst the third one laid on the floor open. She looked at Dave, wide eyed as she tried to cry out something to explain to which Dave only could laugh a bit to break the tension and go to aid Azura and her multiple ribbons.   
  
Meanwhile, the woman suddenly pulled Zangy close, speaking clearly yet softly so neither Dave nor Azura could hear, well, if Azura did hear it’s not like she would tell.

“I’m afraid you can’t intervene on what’s bound to happen, no matter how much you… _care_ for him. He will need you there for the aftermath, but don’t… just observe or things may go down a different road.” The woman spoke, although as soon as Dave had turned to bring the three boxes to the counter, she had already left the pokemon’s paw. She returned to her still stance and her gentle smile, reaching under the counter as she took a beautifully adorned paper bag.   
  
“That would be 45 yen” She spoke, then she reached under the counter again, taking a small black box. She put it on the counter as well, giving a smile to Dave. “And this on the house, just a little something for when you’re ready”  
  
“For when I’m ready? I um… Sure, thanks. Can’t say no to a freebie, so yeah. Thanks!” Dave replied as she took a pouch from his backpack, handing over the notes to pay for everything. After everything was packed and ready to go the trio took their leave, Zangy being left wondering what the words of the old lady would mean.   
  
Once outside of the store, Dave felt as he could breathe again, having had a very odd experience inside. It felt as if he were compelled to do as the old lady said so, which was definitely new, and he didn’t know how to react to it. _Water under the bridge_ he thought.   
  
“Well that was… cool? It was certainly something we’re not used, but hey! We got what we wanted and a bit more, didn’t we?” Dave said, starting to walk ahead both pokemon.   
  
Azura followed soon, lowering her head to peep into the bag and earning a pat on the wing from Dave. Azura looked at him reluctantly, clearly wanting to get her… wings on the contents of the bag.

“You’ll try them out when we arrive, alright? Not here, don’t want to drop them, do you?” He said. Azura nodded, letting out an excited chirp before quickly and gracefully taking off into the starred sky to enjoy herself for a minute against the cold air of the night. Dave followed her with the sight until she was nothing but a blur mixing with the dark blue tones of the night sky.   
  


“Zangoose” Zangy claimed, getting closer to Dave as she now walked by his side. Part of her wanted to do something that may cross the line, her mind hasn’t been the same lately and she couldn’t hide it… at least not too good.   
  
“I know, I know. I promised you a gift too. We’ll get there, don’t worry, why don’t you think about what you’re getting meanwhile, alright?” Dave said with a tone that couldn’t be taken in any other way but caring and warm, which only made Zangy’s feelings flare up even stronger. She nodded eagerly, letting out a faint growl of approval to Dave’s words. The shopping center wasn’t far, only a few streets ahead.  
  


* * *

The rubber wheel of the old combat jeep vibrated against the broken down dirt road underneath, the dust piling up by the seconds as the suspension of the vehicle itself made metallic noises enough to let any bystander know it had ages on it. After a while the rubber stopped its incessant noisemaking to be replaced by the smoother sound of wheel on proper asphalt road. Not soon after a loud quick screeching could be heard as the vehicle came to a stop, parking on a scarcely lit street at the outskirts of Verdanturf town, not too far from the main boulevard. The engine came to a halt before its headlights also went off. The street became quiet as two persons descended from the jeep.   
  
“Please remember, one shot at this. No mistakes, understood?” Said Vanessa, who had gotten off the jeep by the passenger’s side. She was still wearing a cast, although she had removed the sling from her arm. She said that as she looked at the other woman who had been driving the jeep before arriving.   
  
“Yes ma’am. They’re not getting away this time. Are you sure you want to come? With all due respect, you are not in your full cap-” Hilda could not finish her words when sharp pain came to her mouth.   
  
Vanessa had struck her casted arm against Hilda’s mouth, crashing with a silent and painful thud as her lip smashed against her teeth. Hilda brought a hand up to her mouth, giving Vanessa a spiteful and venomous look as she probably cursed with her inner voice.   
  
“Bullshit, and don’t bring that up again. As you can clearly see this benefit me more than hinder my abilities. Understood?” Vanessa paused, walking pass Hilda until she stood on the middle of the street, she lifted her arms, her right arm to the best she could due to the cast although it yet lifted her leather jacket enough to show a the shine of her revolver metallic’s surface. “That was a rhetorical question, by the way” Vanessa added casually as she looked back at Hilda.   
  
Hilda nodded, rubbing off the spec of blood from her upper lip as she joined Vanessa in their walk down to the center of Verdanturf town. The objective now was to find the ranger who had stolen their property… The Lucario that went away. The other squad would bypass the security at both the Police Station and Pokemon center if necessary; anything to find that damned animal and finally put and end to its miserable existence… and to protect their operation, of course. Although. Hilda knew Vanessa didn’t give a damn about the operation itself, this was personal.   
  
Both women walked silently by the sidewalk, not wanting to draw any unnecessary attention towards them, mostly since they were armed and not exactly _model citizen_ material. Hilda looked at Vanessa and knowing how Vanessa was (which she knew), she thought things could go south as soon as they had eyes on anyone seeming a ranger. Matter of fact, she looked down at the bottom of her leather jacket on the side, waiting for the moment she shifted just in the right position and… Well. Just as she thought. Vanessa had her revolver already cocked. This wasn’t a seek and fetch mission, this was hunting.   
  


* * *

“Thank you very much and have a wonderful day sir!” The saleswoman said to Dave before handing over two plastic bags at him, which he took happily.   
  
Behind Dave, and trying to hide her content was Zangy, looking intently at the sealed bags. She hadn’t felt this excited since the day Dave got both Azura and herself a day off in a luxurious (to her) Daycare Center. Unlike other day cares she had ever been, this one had personal rooms for relaxing and specialized training facilities. To this day she wonders what Dave that entire day without them did, but she was glad it happened. Her eyes were glued to the bags, knowing already what was in them even though she would have never known, not in her wildest dreams, she’d get what these bags contained. Once outside of the store Dave turned to look at Zangy, giving her a warm smile.   
  


“Well? I assume that smile of yours… I mean, it seems happy. Are you happy?” Dave said to Zangy.  
  
“Zangoose!” Zangy almost instantly replied, with one too many nods and gestures to express her happiness towards the gifts. She didn’t just get one jacked, but two. Two pieces of clothing of her own, even though she didn’t even need one, just… This wasn’t even for security purposes or anything. No. Dave did this because he truly loved them and… She wished she could mean _he loved her_ in more than a trainer-pokemon love thing. She sighed, but soon was smiling again, lurching towards one of the bags, snatching it from Dave’s hand before he could realize it.   
  
“Woah there speedy! Haha, you’re gonna cut my hand off if you keep that up… I know, I know. Fine” Dave chuckled, stopping on his tracks down the sidewalk. Zangy quickly cut open the bag, throwing the plastic into a nearby garbage bin as she stretched her arms out in front of her to display the piece of clothing. The piece was a synthetic leather jacket which was not as heavy as real leather to not smother the pokemon wearing it. It was black with a white patch on the back in the shape of a slash made with claws. The front had chrome fittings along with a few spike pins on the right shoulder.   
  
“Beautiful… And the jacket is gorgeous too!” Dave joked, letting out another chuckle.   
  
“goose!” Snarled Zangy, scolding Dave by his cheesy line, although she loved every single one of them. She quickly stopped admiring the jacket on its own and decided to put it on and wear it… probably for the following months if Dave didn’t convincer her to take it off to wash it. She hugged the clothing once it was on her, fitting her nicely as it had been made for Zangoose.   
  
“Oh wait, hold on… let me just…” Dave said, moving backwards towards a nearby alley a few meters from them. It was well lit and had a couple of trash containers on it, quite neatly packed and organized. He took out his Pokedex, opening the camera option. “Let’s take a picture now that we’re out of the store… Here, lean against that brick wall. Let’s see the Zangoose punk in ya” He said.   
  
Zangy smiled, growling at Dave playfully before showing him her claws and trying to look fierce. She let out a harsh chuckle as she leaned against the wall, looking down and slightly to the camera. On the far opposite end of the alley suddenly two figures passed by only to come back a few seconds later. They seemed to come at a rushed pace to Dave and Zangy.   
  
Azura had been minding her own business, freeing her mind from any stress or business of the city as she daydreamed of how beautiful these new ribbons would look on her. She had been humming a tune as she flew, eyes closed, and senses keen. Suddenly, her ears picked up a very distinct and loud sound. A gunshot. She looked back down at Verdanturf town, scouting until she saw the source. Two more flashes of light came from an alley between two tall buildings followed by the loud percussions of each. Something had happened. Azura changed her flight and dove down, close to the area to see what the fuss was all about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for putting up with my rather odd uploading dates. I'm writing as I can, but it'll come, don't worry. I'll keep you posted on information about the next chapter, and I hope you guys can enjoy this one. Again, thanks for every single one of you that makes it to the end, and as usual, any criticism or comments is allowed and encouraged. Let me know what do you think!


	7. Shots Fired

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In a turn of events Dave finds himself in the middle of a gruesome scenario. It seems trouble follows him wherever he goes...

“Help! Help me please!” The voice of a woman could be heard through the alley in which Dave and Zangy were, taking them completely by surprise.  
  
Both pokemon and trainer looked up the alley at the woman pleading for help and her limping companion clinging to her by the woman’s shoulder. Dave took a step forward, a bit intrigued but highly alarmed by the whole situation. Seconds ago, they had heard what seemed to be gunshots, and this could be the clarifying proof. He started walking to aid the couple of what looked to be two women, jogging along the way to speed up his arrival. Upon closer inspection both women seemed to be of young age, probably early twenties. The one asking for help being brunette, short hair, leather jacket and denim pants. Her skin tone seemed to light up under the dim light of the alley. On the other hand, her limping companion that seemed wounded was a blonde woman, short hair as well. She wore a hoodie which had a darkened spot that grew with each step, confirming to be from a bleeding injury underneath.  
  


“Stop there, put her down! Don’t move her, you’ll make her wounds worse!” Said Dave, with a worried tone of voice as he walked closer. He helped the brunette woman to gently lay her blonde companion on the alley ground, trying their best to lay her on her back to get a closer inspection of the wounds. Thankfully the floor seemed to be clean, maybe thanks to some garbage-eating pokemon that cleaned not long ago.  
  
“What happened?” Asked Dave as he tried to inspect the injured person on the floor. Her neck was bleeding profusely, and her left side had signs of bleeding as well, underneath the hoodie. He quickly unzipped it, looking in horror as he saw the bloody mess underneath which made him gulp to avoid any sign of disgust. The woman was barely breathing, both injuries fatal if she didn’t receive any proper attention soon. Dave quickly beckoned Zangy to come closer, telling her without leaving his gaze from the injured woman.  
  
“Go get help, and hurry!” He said, the reality of the situation starting to weigh down on his shoulders.  
  
“I- I just- We were walking down to get to the shops in here, when this dude, a guy, he just walked by us and pushed me on the shoulder. I- I’m so so sorry, I didn’t know this was going to happen, I just” The first woman talked loudly and nervously, her own words scrambling over each another, making her speech choppy and hard to understand. Dave didn’t expect less, she may have been in shock after all.  
  
“I, I” The brunette woman said, sobbing before continuing. “I told him to piss off, and he just pulled a gun on us, and, and then he shot her. He shot her and ran away. I couldn’t do shit. It’s all my fault” She said finally, falling to her haunches as she pulled herself against the wall, watching as her friend bled on the floor. She didn’t seem to know how to react to the whole situation.  
  
Dave was lost into his thoughts, wondering what he could do to help the dying woman before him. He quickly tried to put some pressure on the wound, but it only made the woman groan in pain and simply cough blood. This didn’t seem any good, and help was not arriving at all which pissed him off at this moment. He had to do something quick, or a life will fade to nothing on his hands. He took off his backpack, quickly searching through it and spilling some of its contents on the floor; a paper bag with the gift boxes fell down, getting stained on blood as well as other items. A metallic red and white ball also fell, rolling back against the wall being unnoticed by Dave at that moment.  
  
“Just hang in there, alright? Help is on the way, don’t die on me” He mumbled, prying open a small box before withdrawing a roll of bandages. He undid the roll, pressing some bandages against the wound on the neck of the woman, stopping the bleeding from there. He then looked at the other woman against the wall of the alley, a worried look still on his face.  
  


“Hey.” He called, the woman simply staring into the nothingness, still in shock probably. “Hey! Snap out of it, I need your help!” Dave shouted, trying to get her to get his attention.

This last attempt worked, making her blink and look at him. She kneeled next to him, nodding but without saying a word. As time passed, Dave instructed her to apply pressure on the wound on the side of the woman to stop her from bleeding out before it was too late. She did as she was told, holding the wrapping of bandages with shaky hands and nervous looks, getting her fingers wet with blood. Dave’s hands were already a bloody mess, getting his face also stained as he accidentally brushed his hand against his cheek.  
  
Although everything seemed like hours passing by, it was only six minutes before some Chansey and police officers arrived to the scene. The Chansey moved past Dave and the woman aiding him, letting them know they’d take over. Swiftly the pokemon rose the woman, all the way cooing and trying to keep her level. It seemed as if they were using their healing attributes to stabilize the wounds and the bleeding.  
  
It wasn’t long before the Chansey and a couple of officers had left the scene, taking the injured woman to the nearest medical center. Both the brunette stranger and Dave were left in the alley along with a handful of officers who approached them quickly, most likely to take their official statement or ask some questions. Dave sighed, holding his hands together as he sat down next to the still shocked woman. He looked at her, trying to make out any other clue about what had happened earlier, deep down knowing it was useless to stare at her when she wasn’t the one who shot her own friend. She was shaking a bit, and he felt bad about it. As much as he felt shocked by the situation, he was soon recovering, far faster than the woman next to him as he had seen similar situations before… long ago. He hasn’t been into much action since he’s been on outpost duty.  
  
“Hello there… wild night, isn’t it?” A police officer approached, sighing softly. He had a notepad on his hands.  
  
“Yeah, no kidding.” Said Dave, letting out a sigh of his own before slowly standing up against the wall. The woman looked up, to which Dave offered his hand to help her on her feet.  
  
“Everything happened so quickly…” She said, gulping. She held her arm loosely once on her feet, looking at the police officer up and down.  
  
“And that’s exactly why we are here. I know this is… shocking at the moment, so you don’t have to give me your statement right away. However, I do advice to do so, while the memories are fresh” He said to the brunette woman, taking a pause before speaking again.  
“What’s your name ma’am? Do you have an ID on you? A trainer ID maybe?” He asked.  
  


The woman froze for a second before reaching back into a pocked in her jeans. She took out a thin wallet, searching around before pulling out a card. It was a trainer ID card.  
  
The police officer took the card, looking at it for a second. As he did so, Dave had reached back into his own pockets to search for his ID. Before he could continue, the officer gave him a friendly smile and stopped him with a motion of his hand.  
  
“Oh no no, you’re alright. We’re already aware of who you are Mr. Fuchs.” The police officer said before turning to the woman.  
  
“Vanessa Akins, right?” He asked, taking notes on his notepad.  
  
“Yes… That’s me. Should I… start?” Vanessa said, giving a weak smile to the officer.  
  
There was a long pause before the officer stopped writing, nodding at Vanessa so she could give her version of what had just happened. Meanwhile, Dave looked towards the end of the alley, watching as the mass of people gathered to take a look of what had happened. There were a couple of officers and an Arcanine guarding the entrance to the alley. Next to them there was a white/blue furred pokemon which Dave instantly recognized. He excused himself from the officer and Vanessa before parting to meet Zangy, who was chatting with the Arcanine in their own language.  
  
“Hey Zangy! You alright?” He said, interrupting the two pokemon chatting. Zangy looked at Dave briefly, giving him a narrow eye before turning back to the Arcanine. Dave returned a confused look at the two, a word stuck in his throat before turning around and approaching an officer.  
  
“Is there anything I should be concerned about? Is the woman alright?” Asked Dave to one of the officers guarding the scene at the perimeter. The officer in question was a thin framed woman, although taller than Dave himself. She gave him a gentle smile before speaking.  
  
“I can’t really be sure at the moment. I... I would stay hopeful, but her wounds seemed pretty fatal if you ask me. I’m pretty sure the medical team is doing all what they can to get the best outcome possible.” She said, holding a finger to her lower lip, rolling her eyes a little bit to think for a moment. She then spoke again, giving Dave a worried look.  
“As for you, I think you’re out of hots waters… That’s not to say about the other woman, the companion of the injured. She… Well, it seemed like a planned attack. A scouting team found the weapon used for the attack thrown out in a nearby trash can, and.” She paused for a second, letting out a sigh.  
  
“And?” Asked Dave, getting a bit intrigued by the case. It seemed to had taken an unexpected turn.

“Well the weapon has no serial numbers, or any prints at all. It… It doesn’t really have anything to be truthful with you. For the looks of it, it seemed quite made artisanal on a local illegal workshop. We are investigating the case, although it may be just another sign of these poachers being around.” She finished, placing a hand on her hip and then glancing over Dave’s shoulder as she looked at the couple of pokemon in their busy chatting.  
  
“What’s up with these two? I’ve never seen my Arcanine engage so intently in any conversation… I didn’t know he was into that” She joked, making Dave fluster for a second at the thought.  
  
Dave cleared his throat, laughing it off awkwardly before nodding as he scratched the back of his head. “Likewise, I don’t know what’s gotten on her. She hardly ever leaves my side when in public. Maybe the call of duty brought the best out of the two.” He said, a few memories flashing through his head for a second. “Although I do have to say… We haven’t really seen any other pokemon apart from the little team I carry in a couple of days.”  
  
“That may be it probably, sharing some traveling stories. Who would’ve thought pokemon were just… so like us.” The officer said, shaking her head slightly as she watched the two pokemon’s chatter.  
  


Suddenly some heavy fluttering of wings and a flurry of wind surprised both Dave and the officers around, also finally getting full attention of Zangy and the Arcanine. Azura had landed outside of the cordoned area, moving about as the people gathering started to resume their casual night, not to miss out on any of the different shops and attractions. Azura moved from within the crowd, floating over the police line as she got close enough. She knew how nerve-racking these procedures were so she didn’t want to simply storm in too close to the officers… the las thing she’d want would be to receive a warning attack, or a discharge from part of the officers. She glided closer to Dave, letting out a soft and prolonged coo as she went right into nuzzling her head and a large portion of her neck against her trainer’s arm and head. She surely was worried sick; the worst of thoughts always crossed her mind at any given situation.  
  
“Hey you! Quite a night, isn’t it? Were you scouting around too?” Dave asked to Azura, to which he received a positive head nod from the pokemon. He then reached into the fluff of cloud-like feathers to gently rub at the base of her neck.  
  
“Good work. Anything suspicious around? Did you see anybody?” The officer said, turning her gaze towards the floating dragon-pokemon. She had tipped her hat and took out a pencil along with a notepad to be ready for the _yes or no_ type of answers.  
  
Azura thought for a bit before finally letting her head hang like a swan and shaking it negatively. The officer let out another sigh, clueless.  
  
“Don’t worry officer, we’ll be on the lookout for any clues.” Dave reassured her, giving a pat on the back at Azura.  
“Strange times, isn’t it?”  
  
“Yeah. The other day somebody broke into the infirmary at the local stadium and stole a bunch of medical equipment… it’s… odd. We don’t even have a big stadium around here to even be a target. Most likely some pokemon trained to steal whatever, or some opportunist burglars.” The officer revealed, which only concerned more the already cluttered mind of Dave.  
  


* * *

  
  
The minutes went on as Dave and the officer talked, getting up to speed with what both ends had seen during the week. Within the city some unrelated robberies had been taking place, all of them at nights and without leaving a trace. Oddly enough all the items had been located either left out in the open at the public plaza or scattered about at the clears in the forest. Dave told the officer about the sightings of poachers, and how they had broadened the area in which they operated. It seemed that a call for reinforcements was due, that’s why he had come to the city. He didn’t tell her, however, about the wild Lucario still lingering between life and death inside the pokeball in his backpack.  
  
Footsteps were heard as the other Police Officer and the brunette woman approached. Dave and the female officer, whose name turned out to actually be Jenny, looked up at them.  
  
“Her name is Vanessa, and. Can we talk for a second Dave?” The officer said with a troubled tone of voice. Dave nodded, following the officer as he walked past the police line to talk more privately, well, more accurately to be away from eavesdropping. Meanwhile Jenny got closer to Vanessa, talking to her and asking how she felt, trying to provide the comfort someone in her situation may need.  
  
“Is there something wrong officer?” Dave asked, a bit puzzled why couldn’t they talk this in front of the others.  
  
“Bad news and good news. Good news, the woman is fine, she’s twenty-six years old and resident of the Unova region according to her trainer ID. However, I did a quick research, and I didn’t find any information about her. It… it may be just outdated database, but you know how things are. Now, for the bad news- Actually, it’s more of a request. She said she didn’t feel comfortable going back home as she described the man who attacked them to have followed them since then, SO. Would you mind taking her in? We’ll book a room next to yours at the Green Leaf hotel, both to keep an eye on her, and to _keep an eye on her_.” The officer said holding a hand up to his neck.  
“Of course, it’ll be up to you to decide, but I truly wouldn’t want to put her in a cell as given by the protocol for witness protection after what just happened. We want to ensure this whole process doesn’t get any worse.” He finished.  
  
Dave looked at him, thinking for a brief moment as he looked down before nodding. He honestly didn’t mind having to be on the watch for this stranger. It was his duty after all, part of keeping the peace sort of thing, although he never had to keep guard of a human.  
  
“That wouldn’t be a problem. I think I can handle it, no doubt” Dave then answered, giving the officer a smile. The officer relaxed a bit to this answer.  
  
“Thank you, Dave, this really saves us a lot of work… and paperwork.” The officer sighed.  
  


Dave looked up at the bright starry sky, searching for a spec of peace in this eventful night. _And to think we came down to the city to have some peace_ he thought to himself. Closing his eyes and letting a sigh he cleared his mind a bit, looking back at his pokemon companions, the arcanine, the officer and Vanessa. He walked off, giving a handshake to the officer who had given him the details of Vanessa as he kept writing into the notepad for the report.  
  
“Um, did he tell you about the...” Vanessa asked with a shy tone of voice, a bit of hope in it, but nothing too big to be crushed by a negative answer.  
  
“Oh yeah, for sure. I’ll have no problem and I’ll make sure you can have as peaceful a night… well, rest of the night.” Dave answered, trying to soothe the worries of Vanessa. Zangy’s ears perked up immediately, eyeing Vanessa as her nose picked up a very faint but known smell. She shrugged it off as the smells coming from the amalgamation of open stores and people/pokemon around.  
  
“Thank you, really. I didn’t want to bother anyone, but I just can’t… I just can’t” Vanessa tried to explain, looking tortured by the thought of being an inconvenient to anyone.  
  
“It’s fine dear, and yes. Thank you, Dave, for taking care of her, at least until we get a clearer picture of what happened” Jenny said, giving Vanessa a gentle pat on the back of her hand while holding it. “I’d say you are good to go whenever you need Vanessa. Dave is a trained officer, and he’s got a skilled team of pokemon at his disposal. You can’t be on better hands” Jenny reassured Vanessa, to which Vanessa gave an interested smile.  
  
“I’ve always liked pokemon. I guess we all do, but you catch my drift” Said Vanessa, eyeing the Zangoose and the Arcanine before them.

* * *

  
“Are you alright?” Dave asked Vanessa, giving her a soft smile as they walked. Zangy following close by behind, and Azura back up in the sky, soaring across the winds and scarce clouds.  
  
“Well, as good as I can be. I think I’ll… I may visit Claire at the hospital tomorrow if… If I can, I. I’m not sure, I just hope she’s fine” Vanessa said, a worried tone quickly growing on her. Dave simply nodded, not knowing how to properly follow up with that.  
  
The wind was chilling now, inviting both pokemon and humans alike to enjoy of a warm meal, or coffee. This feeling of the crystal-clear night was the one which helped both Dave and Vanessa to decide heading right away for the Hotel. Dave found this logical, probably he could use a shower to let out the tension built during these past events. Besides of being still stained with blood, which was reminded whenever they walked past strangers who gave a startled set of looks.  
  
The quiet between the two only felt more prominent as the busy streets turned into less packed strips and they could start to hear their footsteps on the concrete of the sidewalk. It gave a certain feeling of loneliness, but also freedom. In other circumstances Dave would’ve been much keener to walk faster and enjoy the silence of the night. They could see the Green Leaf hotel up ahead, contrasting with the humble look of the other houses and inns which were located on either side of the main avenue.

“There it is.” Dave said, trying to break the silence between him and the worried Vanessa next to him. Vanessa gave him a weak smile as a response.  
  


* * *

  
  
“Hello, welcome to the Green Leaf! Looking to book?” A receptionist had asked Dave and Vanessa; Dave taking a step forward and lifting his hand a bit.  
  
“Already booked, I think. A room under Fuchs, Dave Fuchs? And another room recently booked under the name of the police department.” Dave said, taking out his ranger ID to scan at the machine on the counter. It beeped, showing the receptionist the details.  
  
“Oh for sure, it’ll be no problem. Room 212 and 212a, right in front yes?” The receptionist asked, holding a set of keys up to Dave. Dave took the keys, taking a step back from the counter as he put them back on the pocket of his cargo shorts.  
  
“Have a wonderful stay mister Fuchs!” The receptionist then added, giving a nod and tipping the small hat he had as part of his uniform.  
  
Vanessa didn’t say a word all the while, most likely still trying to pick up the pieces in her mind of what had happened. Dave didn’t bother to ask anything any further, at least not tonight. Zangy had been eyeing Vanessa all the while, giving Dave the _something’s fishy_ kinda look from time to time. Although Zangy always seemed to have that look on her face. Dave disregarded her looks, not wanting to be rude to the woman who had just went through all this trouble tonight.  
  


The hotel seemed old yet fitted with fancy decorations and very well illuminated. Walking past the receptionist booth, Dave and Vanessa were greeted by a huge lobby going all the way up to the roof in which a huge chandelier hung. The hotel had sixteen floors, all of which had an open view down to the lobby, separated only by windowpanes and a balcony on each floor on the middle. The corridors on each floor were T shaped, having the flat bit give view to the lobby as the bottom of the T were where the main elevator shaft was located. On each end of the corridor giving to the lobby there were emergency doors, opening to the emergency stairs. Dave walked past a few couches and a huge water tank with a shiny Primarina on the inside, which was set at the middle of the lobby, right under the light of the chandelier. It seemed that the tank was connected from underneath with a natural lake which was located behind the hotel in which both pokemon and humans could share a space. With little room to be amazed by the design of the hotel, Dave and Vanessa headed for the elevator shaft, this being three set of elevators. On the first floor, instead of being rooms on the sides of the main corridor behind the lobby, there were a working/training small gym, and a cafeteria on the right side.  
  
Once the elevator arrived, all three stepped inside, continuing with the quiet they had kept until that point. Vanessa seemed a bit uneasy though, maybe it was just everything starting to sink in Dave thought. Zangy looked at the two a bit reluctant still, but more relaxed as time passed.  
  
As soon as the elevator doors closed, Vanessa looked at Dave, eyeing him with both mischievousness and curiosity. Dave on the other hand was distracted fiddling with the key chains of keys given as he looked down at his pocket. Zangy, however, caught Vanessa giving him that look, which made her let out a faint growl and lower her ears. Dave quickly looked at Zangy before looking at Vanessa who gave a soft gasp at the sudden growl.  
  
“Oh gosh, I’m so sorry!” Dave said, excusing Zangy as he then turned his gaze to the pokemon. “Don’t be rude Zangy, that’s not a way to treat people.” He said, giving Zangy a reproaching look while he shook his head. “She needs to feel comfortable and trust us Zangy, that’s the deal, not the other way around. That’s such a shameful behavior” Dave added, trying to emphasize the situation to the pokemon, which to the clueless Dave, didn’t grasp what was Vanessa going through.  
  
In response Zangy lowered her ears, but this time with embarrassment as she was being scolded by Dave. For some reason this time felt even worse, as she knew there was something wrong with Vanessa. She tried to protest, but a final firm gaze of Dave was enough to keep her quiet and look away at the elevator’s wall.  
  


Dave apologized to Vanessa, reassuring her that Zangy had odd ways of showing even affection, and that her behavior wasn’t any different around people the pokemon actually trusted, and that she was not to fear. Vanessa nodded, holding a hand to her chest as if to calm down from the scare she had gotten from the oh so fierce Zangy.  
  


* * *

  
  
With a soothing ding and the mechanical sound of the brakes taking place, the elevator doors finally opened to Dave, Zangy, and vanessa. All three stepping out of the machine and being greeted by the gentle lightning of the side lights which were hidden behind a ledge on the top of the walls on both sides along the corridor. Thirteenth floor was their stop as they walked along the white doors. Only 4 rooms per floor, which meant plenty of space inside as a proper luxury hotel, only making Dave feel a little bit better by how much the room cost. He looked back at Zangy as she was trying to distract herself with the pattern of the wallpaper, smiling to himself. That reminded him that the luxuries weren’t only for him to enjoy, and that his pokemon deserved it. Heck, if the space was enough, he may actually just let out of the pokeball to his whole team.  
  
They arrived at the set of doors closer to the balcony/corridor, which in golden numbers read “212” and “212a” accordingly, in front of each other as the receptionist had said. Dave walked up to Vanessa, searching in his pocket as he reached out to hand her the keys to her room with a courteous smile.  
  
“Thanks… I know you didn’t have to do this, but… you did, so thanks” She said, taking the set of keys as she turned around without further comments. She twisted the knob once unlocked and walked in, giving a last wave before closing the door behind her as she got inside. Once Vanessa was out of hearing distance Dave quickly looked back at the curious Zangoose standing behind him.  
  
“What was that in the elevator? Are you out of your mind? Her friend could be dead now, and you are planning to give her even more trouble?” Dave said in an angry whispering voice as to not be overheard. Zangoose crossed her arms firmly across her fluffed chest, looking away with a firm huff. Her ears were lowered, still having an effect under Dave’s scolding.  
  
“Oh, so you’re going to give _me_ trouble as well. What’s up with you Zangy?” Dave asked, crossing his arms the same way as Zangy, standing right in front of her up close. Zangy growled softly before letting out a soft “goose” out, between shameful and defiant.  
  
“I don’t get you sometimes Zangy. You know I love you and can handle your… odd… behavior, but that’s not the case nor excuse to act this way with others. Much less in this situation, Arceus!” Dave added, tilting his head to the side as he looked at Zangy.  
  
The pokemon didn’t bother to look up at him, simply grumbling and mumbling her name a few times before sighing in defeat. She then swallowed a thick knot before looking up without raising her head too much.  
  
“Zangoose. Zaann… goose.” Zangy said.  
  
“Yeah, you’re sorry I guess too. Let’s… Let’s be grateful you didn’t hurt her or anything, she seemed fine alright? Let’s just..” Dave said, letting out a sigh before gently placing both hands on the pokemon’s soft furred shoulders.  
  
“let’s just enjoy the night a bit, alright? We can watch a movie and ask room service… it’s already paid for, so we can take that luxury… but don’t get used to it.” He spoke.  
  
Zangy, feeling tingles from within her stomach, nodded, looking up at Dave as her eyes widened slightly to his touch. She let out a very odd purring noise before letting out a faint “goose” again. Dave chuckled to her reaction.  
  
“You’re such a silly thing sometimes, haven’t I told you that?” He added. Zangy rolled her eyes, taking Dave’s hands off her shoulders as she now grabbed him by his shirt and yanked him towards the door of their room. It seemed somebody was keen to have some privacy.  
  
“Alright, alright you silly big cat, I’m going to open already” Dave said, looking for the keys in his pants before unlocking the door and twisting the knob. Soon both pokemon and trainer were behind the door and inside their room.

* * *

  
  
The room was… opulently decorated. As they entered, the ample view of the kitchen was the first thing they saw on one side with a large marble topped counter which separated it from the dinning area. A table with six wooden chairs set on either side followed, a small decorative light hanging on top of it. Next there was an open fireplace with took the footprint of a wall and seemed to deliver heat to both the dinning area and the living room area at the same time on winter. Speaking of the living room, there was a huge L shaped couch, with small futons next to it for others to sit, a coffee table and a huge television on the wall in front of it. There was a corridor to the right of the entrance, which Dave followed and entered the master bedroom. There was a king-sized bed, and next to the wall a huge pear-shaped fluffy cushion-like sofa, most likely for a pokemon to sleep on. Dave pointed at it as he smiled to Zangy.  
  
“heh? Heh? Isn’t this fancy, huh?” He said, quite amazed himself they had all this space for themselves. As a matter of fact, not even the house he grew into was this big. Zangy walked in front of Dave, looking around the room as curiosity took over her.  
  
The pokemon went up to the pear-shaped sofa, placing her claw on it as she felt how it gave to the pressure. She smiled. Quickly she turned around, walking up to in front of the bed looking at the wall and the television bolted on it only for a second as it didn’t really catch her attention. She then looked at the wall across the bed, intrigued by a door that wasn’t the one they had come from. She walked to it and pushed to come inside, walking right into a bathroom. A quite large bathroom which could count as a full room on its own. There was a bathtub on the corner, large enough to fit three or more humans she thought. On the other corner there was a shower with windowpanes separating it from the rest of the room to keep the water in. The rest of the bathroom had appliances she already was familiar with such as the toilet or the sink, although they all looked of way better quality than what she was used to.  
  
Soon Dave walked into the bathroom, shirtless and holding a white towel with the logo of the hotel under his shoulder.  
  
“Alright Zangy, clear this room. It’s me time and I want to get a good bath to scrub the night off.” He said, placing the towel over the closed lid of the toilet. Zangy huffed, taking a much longer than what’s needed look at Dave. Her mind wandered off to that bare chest being atop her as sh.—Zangy gulped, nodding and walking out of the bathroom not before being given a weird look by Dave.  
  
Once outside Zangy heard the sound of running water and bare footsteps on the tiles. She also heard Dave giving a surprised comment.  
  
“This is a… jacuzzi? Woah, with water jets?”  
  
Zangy let out a husky chuckle at that, walking up to the bed before falling face first on it. She let out a soft grumble.  
  


* * *

  
  
Azura had her eyes closed, feeling the breeze bathe her feathers and body, the coldness of the air being rather soothing to her. She found herself flying off too far from the hotel, giving a gentle U turn as she flew back. The shine of the moon giving her plumage a silver luxurious feel and look, making her stand out to any bystander looking up from the ground. The graceful dragon pokemon was gently cooing a beautiful tune, letting her bird songs drip over the silenced night. She dove down towards the hotel, flying close by to inspect the rooms from the outside until she spotted a familiar white/blue furred pokemon laying face first on a bed. She chirped with joy, memorizing the floor in which the room was before taking a twirl on the air and doing a screw spin down towards the ground. She skillfully rose up just to pass through the entrance of the hotel only to take off again, flying up to the thirteenth floor by the clear of the lobby. She gently landed on the carpeted corridor walking up to the room she believed had seen Zangy. With a gentle knock of her talon she waited.  
  
A few moments later a tired Zangoose opened the door from the inside, having smelled who she was beforehand. Azura gave Zangy a very close nuzzle, chirping softly as she entered the room to which Zangy could only sigh and reciprocate giving Azura a hug of her own.  
  
They all could finally rest after what seemed a nonstop turn of events throughout the last couple of days. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Holidays everybody. I do apologize for how long it took me to update, but hey, it's here. I hope I don't dissapoint with this. As usual, criticism is always welcomed, along with any comment you'd like to leave. Thanks for reading! 
> 
> P.S: I think it goes without saying that the next chapter won't come until next year... Sorry. I know some people hate these kinda jokes :D, so I apologize for that too. Kinda.


	8. Silk Touch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A small breath can be taken once in a while, to slow down and quiet the white noise made by the ongoing and never ending fast paced life. A small breath can be taken. A turmoil of emotions clash as Zangy starts to understand her feelings. 
> 
> (Warning, there will be a small sexual scene. This is for the people who have been reading for the plot, and not the spicy bits. Be warned)

Dave slid down the bathtub, sinking into the foamy warm water, feeling as his body released the built-up tension for once. He sighed, closing his eyes slowly as he listened to the soothing dripping of water, probably coming from the condensation of the vapors in the bathroom. He had thought of taking a shower, but he decided if he’s going to be paying for a luxury hotel, then he deserved a luxury treatment. Heck, he would even use the little aromatic soap bars and the fancy bottles of shampoo that were on the ledge of a window.  
  
He thought about all that had happened, trying to make sense out of his life at this moment. He sunk even more into the foamy water. The bubbles of the soap he had thrown in covered partially the surface of the steamy water, only his tiptoes floating up at the end of the tub. He had undone the elastic band holding his long hair within the boundaries of his ranger cap, now letting it float about over his shoulders. Naked, if one were to take a look at him, one could easily notice the wounds of the past. There were scratches all around, from marks that would disappear in a day, to deep scars probably made when trying to capture a scared pokemon or trying to fight off any undesirable people.  
  
He rose his hand up to his neck across his chest, trying to gently get rid of a knot just above his shoulder. He started to just feel how tense his body was, how ready to fight he’s grown to be. It’s true he was a bit paranoid, but that made him the best fit for the job. Somebody who could be prepared for a monster jumping out from under the bed kinda thing. Dave frowned, feeling restless as he tried to relax, bringing his hands up to his face, splashing water over it to try and rub off the week in a single blow.  
  
“How do I manage to get myself in these situations?... Sometimes it feels everybody else is living a peaceful life in Hoenn.” He paused, letting out an annoyed sigh. “Although I do know what I was enrolling for. I… this is my passion. Helping others who can’t help themselves, giving them a voice. That’s what I wanted to d- That’s what I want to do.” He sunk even more into the water, letting his chin go under along his lips. He opened his eyes, propping himself back up from under. “I never thought I’d love my voice by giving voice to others”  
  
He went on into his monologue, trying to convince himself that selfless and dedication to the other pays off. He even thought of his pokemon, how their company made him feel and he was relieved. He loved them all, and he loved the fact they’ve staid by his side. He had always given them the option to leave, some have, but those who stayed have no intentions on leaving any soon. Matter of fact, Zangy has been acting strange lately he thought, and let his pondering continue.  
  


* * *

  
  


In the other room, Zangy went directly back to laying face down on the mattress, letting out a harsh growl muffled by the sheets. Azura had followed by, staring at the white-blue furred friend with a crooked smile in reprimand. Azura graciously floated into the air, rounding the bed before laying next to Zangy, and unlike her, the footprint of her dragon self was little to none on the sheets.  
  
Azura leaned closer towards Zangy, letting out a soothing slow cooing. Most likely concerned about the Zangoose faceplanting on the bed like a child. To this Zangy simply let out a short groan, turning around on the bed closer to the flying dragon. She was now looking upwards to the ceiling, the soft blue face of Azura looking down on her, closing her eyes as she gave the Zangoose a friendly smile.  
  
“Zaaangoooosee…” Replied Zangy, rolling her eyes to the protective and mother-like attitudes of her friend. The Zangoose looked to the side, staring at the television on the wall past the now crinkled cover of the bed, and let out a sigh.  
  
Azura looked at the door that led to the bathroom understanding the situation quickly. The task her friend wanted was no small endeavor. Dave sure was a caring trainer and companion, but he has never shown _that_ sort of affection towards any of them, not even herself being her older pokemon. He had always been a good friend to them, taking care of his pokemon, cleaning their wounds even when it was not necessary thanks to the healing system. For one side Azura was afraid of what could happen once the idea of having a relationship with his pokemon crossed Dave’s mind. Would he be disgusted? Would he leave? Would he leave… them? There were too many possible outcomes to even risk it. She never intended to discourage the wild passion growing on Zangy, but she didn’t really boost it either. She had made her attempts to introduce Zangy to other Zangoose and different pokemon that matched her egg type, but to no avail, either she flees, or the other party ends up fainted. Azura looked to her side at the collapsed depressive looking Zangoose, letting out a soft sad coo.  
  
“Goose?” Zangy asked, turning her head back to Azura, knowing she may had been thinking about this too. Her sighing wasn’t really something to lift her spirits. The Zangoose pouted, letting out a soft huff to her friend’s hopeless thoughts. She crossed her arm over her own furred chest, grumbling softly.  
  
To this, Azura nudged Zangy’s arm with her head, cooing slowly. She didn’t mean to upset her at all, but her reckless actions could lead to something neither party would want. She definitely did not want to lose Dave, and she knew Zangy didn’t either.  
  


* * *

  
  


Dave was sitting on the edge of the bathtub, having a towel covering his back as the few bubbles remaining stuck to the already drained tub popped away. He let out a relaxed sigh, holding the towel downwards against his neck before standing up to dry himself properly. As he dried himself, scrubbing the towel down his arms, stomach, and downwards his privates, he thought about having a quick fix there. However, once being ready to dress up he decided it better not be today, he’d have to take another shower and he was already fed up with relaxation. Crouching in front of the sink and reaching under to the cabinets, he withdrew a folded towel-like large cloth, which once unfolded, revealed to be a bathing robe. He put it on, making sure to button up an inner layer that hid his privates in case the outer sewed-in strap got loose. Dave looked at himself in the mirror, not being able to help himself but flex a little bit, even with the robe on. He felt oddly confident with his new looks, seeming richer than he actually was. _Maybe this wasn’t such a bad trip after all_ he thought to himself. He couldn’t wait to try out all of the different appliances and common rooms the hotel had to offer, being specially interested on the Gym.  
  
The door of the bathroom opened, light from it quickly washing the master bedroom with a warm tone, surprising both Azura and Zangy which were still messing around in a friendly manner. As Zangy feigned offense, Azura made her best to nudge at her side and rock from side to side the white-blue furred pokemon. To this sight, Dave rushed to the bed and jumped on it landing on his side next to the puzzled Zangoose.  
  
“So, what are we playing?” Dave asked, laughing softly at the freaked reaction on the face of Zangy. He then playfully held the Zangoose’s nose, moving her snout from side to side gently.  
  
“Zannggggg” Zangy replied, having her nose being toyed with. She lifted her paws up and held Dave’s hand, holding it for a second. She then quickly pulled it away, letting out a playful growl of her own as she sat up on the bed, facing Dave. Azura looked at them all too amused to intervene.  
  
Dave chuckled, sitting up as well, although before he could even prop himself properly on the bed he had been tackled back down by the blur of white-blue fur. Zangy laid across his belly, holding onto his whole right arm as she chewed on his shoulder, mostly piercing her teeth through the fabric of the bathrobe, and pulling from it. The air from her lungs rushing out as a huff through her nostrils with each energic pull, making Dave chuckle by the action.  
  
“Stop it!” He said jokingly, trying to pry Zangy off his clothings. “You’ll make it so this is even more expensive than it is” He finished out, laughing a bit as he tried to pull the firmly gripping pokemon away. He then resorted to another technique that may prove more effective. He dug both hands into the fur of her belly, gently starting to tickle underneath at her skin. This caused an elated squeal from Zangy, who taken off guard let instantly go of the bathrobe, cringing from the touch and looking right back up at Dave trying to protest.  
  
“You ruin the robe, you get the tickles, that’s the deal you furred beast!” Dave said in a playful tone as he continued to attack Zangy’s stomach with multiple tickling all over it. He watched the Zangoose squirm a bit before noticing of a rolling purr growing from her. Dave looked down at the not so squirmy Zangoose anymore, feeling oddly pleased to give a few belly rubs to Zangy. She wouldn’t even ask for pats on a regular basis.  
  
“You okay buddy? It seems the meowth got your tongue” He joked, placing now his full hand on her belly as he gave her a proper slow rub in a circling motion. It was very pleasant to feel her muscles underneath, a bit odd considering she looked more like a mass of fluff most of the time. He usually looked over the fact she’s been a fighter from the day he met her.  
  
“Zangooose… goose” Zangy replied, a bit lost in the essence of Dave washed now all over her. She could smell his damp hair and body through the bathrobe, bringing to her small flashes of the time she had touched herself to the thought of him in the shower. On the other end of the bed Azura perceived the situation and widened her eyes a bit, alarmed that Zangy may do something she may regret doing. Azura let out a soft short coo, to pointlessly try to snap Zangy out of her daydreaming.  
  
Dave looked at Azura, still giving gentle rubs to Zangy’s belly, unaware that a clawed paw of the Zangoose gently laid atop of his own rubbing hand. He didn’t make much out of that, as he interpreted the action as simply being contented by the affective rubs. Little did he know that paw was only there to fuel the not so playful thoughts of its owner. Zangy held Dave’s hand firmly, pushing it lower as she felt the burning sensation grow ever so slightly in between her thighs.  
  
“Azura, I can give you some rubs too, don’t be like this. And I had though you for the ma… mature uh… Zangy?” He asked as he realized where his hand was now. Dave had stopped caressing the Zangoose, staring now at his hand buried into the fur going down the crotch of the pokemon. He blushed, quickly sliding his hand out of her privates, not sure if he had done it accidentally at this point. Zangy let out a soft whine as she felt Dave’s hand move so quickly out from her privates, and even if as little as the warmth from it had reached her sex, she felt it through. Soon she had realized what had happened, and where she had lead Dave’s hand, which didn’t help at all to cool down her libido. Zangy simply sat up, shocked and embarrassed.  
  
“OH, holy Arceus I’m so so sorry” Said Dave apologetic, he was going to start trying to make sense out of this until a sudden huge white fluffy mass fell over both Zangy and Dave.

  
Azura had come to the rescue and tackled both, covering them with her fluffed up cloud-like feathers. Thankfully her intervention helped get both their minds out of the gutter as Dave reacted.

  
“Pfft, hey, you big silly bird, get outta here!” Said Dave, to which Azura let out a soft playful chirping, flailing her wings about to furthermore make at least Dave get over the recent actions of Zangy. Zangy now… the Zangoose had squeezed out from under Azura, rolling back to the ground at the base of the bed. She looked up, blushing so hard the mere heat of it could be felt through the fur on her face if one were to put a hand close enough.  
  
Dave, feeling the situation growing awkward for everybody decided it was time to get a snack, or look around the apartment. He gently pushed Azura aside, standing up from the bed as he stretched out standing on the floor. He put his right arm up above his head, holding his elbow with his left hand as he arched his back slightly to pop his joints. After a relaxed sigh he turned around, facing both pokemon.  
  
“You know what we’re gonna do? We’re going to go get some food from the fridge… if there’s any. Then we can watch something, or even let the others out. Sounds good?” Dave asked.  
  
Zangy turned to him, standing up on a jump from the floor, nodding. She wanted as little interaction as possible with Dave at the moment, so she just let out a soft roar and walked out of the room towards the kitchen. Dave watched her walk out, crooking his grin a bit worried that the situation may have been too awkward for her… not to call it otherwise. Azura was looking at Dave from the bed, giving a coo of her own in approval to his idea of getting something to munch on. With that done, she also took off, swiftly gliding out of the room to follow her friend. Dave was left alone in the room, which maybe was for the best for now.  
  
“What am I gonna do with these two… and Zangy. I’m…” He sighed. The thing being Dave wasn’t the most oblivious to Zangy’s advances. Matter of fact, he’s been thinking about Zangy a lot. Thinking about her actions and how she’s been acting towards him. He felt guilty that the pokemon has had to rely so much on him, to the point of having these mixed feelings. He has been wanting to play naïve to maybe discourage her from being this way, but it seems his reaction or lack thereof has only made her push more and insist more on her feelings. He didn’t want her to feel this way, and that’s why he’s been keeping her out of her pokeball. He was still wondering why he interrupted both the Arcanine and Zangy when they were talking back when the incident happened, maybe that was the chance she needed to make other friends, and he blew it.  
  


* * *

  
  


**Somewhere far from the city…  
  
**A huge cloud of smoke suddenly burst out of the main entrance of the towering building. The boats at bay and several men, women, and pokemon disembarking; walking towards the tower as heavy radio chatting was heard on the radio. It seemed as an operation was taking place, but none of the people or pokemon present had any recognizable feature or badge. The only common ground was that all of them had a green bandana, or a lasso, or even a cap with a symbol on it. One of the men approaching the entrance as the smoke cleared had taken his shoulder-mounted radio, pressing its side button, and talking into it.  
  
“We are ready sir. We don’t have a visual of the recognizance group yet. What are the orders, over.” He said looking into the dark interiors of the building ahead.  
  
Suddenly, a huge organic roar could be heard from up in the skies, rainclouds gathering above their heads as the ambience became darkened and with risk of shedding rain and fury all over them.  
  
“It’s time” A voice from the radio came out, making the man holding it nod before signaling the other members to go into the tower.  
  
A squad of seven people rushed in followed by two Garchomps close by. The remaining people at the beach awaited, setting up a camp with the help of a Gardevoir and a couple of Dragonite. One of the women separated from the group, approaching the man that communicated by radio who was now standing next to the entrance awaiting any orders or response from the team.  
  
“What do you think it is?” She asked, folding a paper she held and handing it to him.  
  
“I’ve heard rumors only, but this seems way better than those. It’s real… How else could. I hope it’s real, the boss wouldn’t launch this whole enterprise without being sure of it. A huge serpent said to control the weather in some ways… that’s what I’ve heard” He then said, taking the paper and placing it in his pocket.

“I just hope it’s worth our time here. What about the team that entered first?” She added, eyeing the entrance of the tower.  
“I’m sure they’re fine. The place is ridden with electricity interference, our equipment was only as good as what we could get from the region.” He sighed, looking at his radio before speaking again. “I wish we had the other radios and gear, from the HQ”  
  
The woman nodded, turning around as she left thinking about the teams inside. She looked out to the sea, the huge cruiser from where they came was about a mile in on the ocean. She could see as the side gates were opening, knowing the containment unit was going to be brought to the shore.  
  
“Alright ladies and mutts let’s get these transmitters in order. I want them connected by yesterday!” She yelled walking at a faster pace towards the tents that were being set up by both pokemon and people. The operation had to be done during the night, otherwise it would attract unwanted attention from the casual trainers surfing about, or any other police vessel that would pass by. They had to be quick and do this tonight.  
  


* * *

  
  


Dave held his backpack for a moment, placing it on the bed afterwards and opening it. He soon realized some of its items were stained with the blood of the injured woman, probably when he crouched down to help her. He took a clean towel from the bathroom, placing it on the bed next to him as he started to put on it all of the stained items. A few potion bottles and a notebook were dirty, but he also noticed there were only five pokeballs inside. He looked around, and even checked if it had any holes but nothing.  
  
A knot formed on his throat, fearing the worst. He quickly pulled them all, placing them on the other side of the backpack. He took one and clicked the white metallic button for nothing to happen. It was an empty one, so he soon put it down before taking another. He tried the same with three of the pokeballs, confirming these were the ones he had just in case. He should’ve had three empty and three occupied.  
  
“I… fuck” He took both of the other pokeball, aiming them to the floor on the other side of the bed before pressing their buttons and releasing the pokemon within. Red beams of light briefly illuminated the room as two figures materialized. One of them being a long purple creature, quickly coiling to raise its head as the flat and wide upper half of it turned to look at Dave.  
  
“Arbok!” The poison type pokemon shouted, letting out a soft hiss afterwards.  
  
The second pokemon appearing next to it was of a more recognizable figure, being a quadruped grey and black canine. The Mightyena rose its head, looking over the bed at Dave and let out a confused roar. It was what Dave feared.  
  
“Hey guys… It’s been a crazy day trust me” He said to both pokemon, simply starting to put the items from the backpack back inside of it. He closed the zipper, picking the bag up by a strap and letting it fall next to the nightstand. Dave laid down on the bed heavily, letting out a sigh that seemed to vent all of his air and stress for a brief moment. Closing his eyes and with his hands atop his stomach he started thinking, collecting his memories back to the incident to see if he missed anything.  
  
He suddenly felt a heaviness next to him, followed by quick sniffing and finally a warm wet tongue lapping at his face. Dave couldn’t help but smile, moving his hand to hold the snout of the Myghtyena, moving it aside.  
  
“C’mon Zach, cut it out… I’m happy to see you too. I’ve just had a lot in my plate today” Dave said, memories still flashing back into his mind when he remembered the Arcanine and the officers. As if a snorlax had been lifted off his chest he breathed in and out in relief.  
  
“The police… if the ball fell, they must have the pokeball. I can explain it later, but… that’s a relief. I thought I wouldn’t be able to even close my eyes tonight.” Dave said, lifting his gaze to meet the curious eyes of the Mightyena looking down at him.  
  
“So… I was thinking, you both deserve a break. Why don’t you guys go outside and y’know… check the bushes.” He chuckled, making both Mightyena and Arbok exchange knowing looks for a brief second. Arbok was the first to try and excuse herself, letting out a loud hiss as she tried to slither onto the bed, making it creak a little bit by already having Dave and the full Mightyena on it. She receded, rolling her eyes.  
  
“Alright, Alright. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to pry. Now, c’mon. Let’s go you two. I know you guys like your privacy, and I respect that. This time though…” Dave said, clearing his throat. “… Can you guys stay within the city? I don’t want to take a ferry once again to go get you guys… nor I want to pay more damages. Understood?” He finished with a stern tone on his voice.  
  
Zach looked at Arbok, letting out a dry chuckle to which Arbok let out a hissing sound of her own. After this, Zach gently nuzzled against Dave’s cheek, walking out of the room and followed soon by Arbok.  
  
On the living room Zangy and Azura were chit chatting on their own way, sitting on the ample couch that faced the turned off television. The four pokemon exchanged looks before Zach motioned at Zangy to open the door for them. With a grunt and a pained look in her eyes, the Zangoose stood up, walking sluggishly towards the main door and opening it for them.

“Goose” She said, having a bothered look on her eyes now, watching them as both Arbok and Mightyena went out. Once on the hallway they both started to play around, heading for the emergency stairs, seeming very close to each other.  
  


“And there they go. Again. I swear, I don’t know what I’ll do with them.” Said Dave, watching from the corridor as he walked from the room.  
  
“How do they expect me to rehab pokemon when I can’t have time to even be with the ones that are mine? It’s just… well, it’s how it is.” He added, going towards the kitchen area of the main room. Zangy looked at him, closing the door as the last glance of the outside hall could be seen with the door in front of their hotel room open slightly.

* * *

  
  


After a quick dinner, and a brief stop by the room service from the hotel to their door, Dave was ready to go and finally get some shuteye. It was a quiet night, mostly watching fascinated as Zangy and Azura exchanged words he couldn’t quite understand. He just heard them using her names or different tones and growls to what seemed to him, a very colorful conversation. He didn’t want to interrupt nor bother this time, so he just watched and ate his food. They all had asked for a sandwich to fit their own likes, having the premium of a large ingredient’s selection from the menu book next to the phone.  
  
“Well girls, don’t let me keep you awake.” He chuckled, taking the plate he used to eat and putting it on the sink at the kitchen. He then turned around, leaning against the counter.  
“I’ll go get some sleep. Don’t make a fuss, the television is pokemon friendly as you can notice by the larger pad on the table in front of both of you.” He said pointing at a large screen on the table which could be used by pokemon with claws or other different limbs.  
  
He then walked out towards the room, stretching, and cracking his back.

Once Dave left Zangy gave a squinted look at Azura, to which she responded with a soft nagging coo, giving a soft peck to the Zangoose’s arm. Zangy flinched, letting out a soft growl before sighing. She then lifted a claw up and held her bottom eyelid with it, sticking her tongue out at Azura in a mocking motion. After that, and to the stern look of Azura, she stood up from the couch leaving the dragon pokemon to herself on the couch. Zangy was decided, staring at Azura again.  
  
This time Zangy pointed at Azura with a claw, and then firmly pointed to the couch. Then repeated the motion, emphasizing as she said softly.  
  
“Zan… goose.” She said firmly. “Zangoose.”  
  


* * *

  
  


It was far past midnight, around three in the morning. The faint glow of the moon barely made it through the heavy curtains that remained closed; the dim light through could only shine the outline of what was inside the room. A king-sized bed, and on it, Dave sleeping soundly. Everything was quiet and motionless except from the slow and hardly noticeable rising and down of his chest as he breathed.  
  
The shine of the doorknob suddenly shifting, ever so slightly indicating that it was being twisted from the other side. Slowly two claw shaped digits slid through the gap of the door, gently pushing it further as it revealed the culprit. Zangy peeked her head inside, her bright blue eyes, although as dim as the glow of the moon, were the only noticeable aspects of herself in the darkness.  
  
Dave looked so peaceful thought Zangy, taking a few steps into the room as quietly as she could. Thankfully, the carpeted floor wouldn’t creak nor scratch against her claws. Zangy smiled, kneeling next to Dave, not yet daring to even touch the bed. She parted her maw open slightly, letting her heated breath out. She felt herself racing, her heart pounding against her furred chest as if it were to jump out at any given moment. She drew one claw onto the covers, gently running it up Dave’s thigh as she felt the fabric being tainted with the warmth coming from underneath. She held her breath, waiting for any reaction from Dave for a solid minute.  
  
Once nothing has happened, she gulped down, breathing again, but this time trying to pace her lungs. She felt as if even the slightest movements of her could rattle the entire room and wake him up. She had to make her move, she couldn’t just torchic out now. As agreed with Azura she would only have this one chance. It was true, she would never be able to know if she truly felt attracted to him, or if it was simply sexual tension within her that made her act this way. She had to find out, and the only she could know was trying it herself.  
  
“Goose…” Zangy let out in soft breathed in sigh. She suddenly felt herself trembling, closing her eyes tight because she knew this was crossing the line. Finally, after no major hesitation she placed her paw on Dave’s crotch, lightly feeling at it as she could palm the outline of his member. Zangy bit the bottom lip of her maw, daring to gently squeeze at it as she felt Dave’s intimate parts react to her warm paw and her touch. _These covers would be a true trouble_ she thought to herself, very slowly caressing Dave’s crotch as if it were the hand of a loved one.  
  
She looked up at Dave’s face, to see if there was any reaction at all, but so far, he kept sleeping soundly. Slowly she traced her paw up the covers, holding onto the end of them against Dave’s chest, only for thoughts to rush into her mind. This was wrong. This was very wrong. This was the point of no return, after moving the covers back, and if she was lucky enough that Dave didn’t wake up, if he happened to eventually wake up there would be nothing to explain. The situation would talk by itself.  
  
Zangy feared, but her pumped up hormones and illegality of the situation won over her small attempt to do the “right” thing. Soon the covers were gently moved all the way down to Dave’s knees, which the act itself took Zangy several minutes to pull off. Suddenly, Zangy froze. She was caught. That was it. She was done for.  
  
That was all she thought as Dave’s hand lifted only to rest back atop his own chest, scratching his skin. Zangy felt as her heart suddenly started working again, feeling herself tremble even more to what she was doing. She wanted to enjoy the moment, but at the same time she wanted there to be a moment at all. If she went too slow, chances were, Dave would wake up, and she would be left without moment nor excuses. She had to go all in.

  
If she was going to be guilty of… technically raping her own trainer, then she would own it, and at least enjoy it. She knew it was wrong, but… there was something else than sexual tension pushing her. She… wanted him. Deep down she would’ve liked this had happened while Dave was awake, having his wonderful eyes look at her. His toned arms held her steady as he moved her legs apart and… and…  
  
“Zang…” Zangy breathed out, her half lidded eyes only showing how hot she felt on the inside. As soon as she snapped from her daydreaming, she realized what was happening. Her paw was cupping on top of Dave’s underwear, which now sported a substantial erection underneath. Without noticing she had been gently caressing and working her paw on top of Dave’s member, eliciting him to react.  
  
As if it were a dream, she slowly slid her paw up, hooking a claw underneath the elastic band and lifting it. Her eyes fixed on what was under the boxers, wide now both with curiosity and lust as her claw worked Dave’s underwear lower and lower. In no time she was greeted face to face with Dave’s erection. She had thought about it for so long and fantasized about it so many times that seeing the real deal felt surreal.  
  
“goose…” Zangy panted out softly, moving her free paw lower and in between her legs. Her breathing starting to pace up and quicken ever so slightly as she worked her paw on her own sex. The other paw matching her speed, without hesitation and a firm grip, started to slowly caress Dave’s member up and down. She felt how it twitched and came to life in her paw further, getting harder and hotter by the seconds, only fueling her own lust and libido.  
  
Zangy looked up at Dave, to her surprise, he was still asleep although his face was not facing the window instead of up at the ceiling. This made her feel a bit more daring… If he didn’t wake up, this meant she could go further. And oh, did she want to go further… With movements that would’ve put a slowpoke to shame, she got onto the bed, careful not to move too much or disturb Dave’s sleeping position. Getting on her knees next to him she sniffed the air, shivering at the smell of Dave filling the room. To her, something she craved for. With closed eyes she leaned down until she felt the tip of Dave’s member gently touch her cold nose. This time she put one paw next to Dave’s hip, holding herself in position as her other paw went back in between her legs. She could already feel her own entrance irradiating heat and glistening with her own wetness as she gently put her paw to work. Leaning further she stuck her tongue out, for the first-time tasting Dave’s sex, feeling drunk already by the whole experience. Slowly and with a steady rhythm she continued licking the underside of Dave’s erection up to his tip, coating it with her saliva. It felt entirely new to have his member twitch against her town, pulsating with Dave’s own pleasure… pleasure she was giving him.  
  
Zangy redoubled her efforts, opening her eyes slightly at the same time she put the tip of Dave’s dick insider her welcoming maw. Her paw stopped rubbing at her sex, and her breathing came down to a halt. Her eyes met Dave’s, and her thoughts simply stopped working. She couldn’t move, she didn’t want to move. She couldn’t explain her moves.  
  


Dave looked at Zangy, half awake and half still asleep, just starting to get acquainted with the situation. His senses came to him crashing into his mind, realizing that the warm and wetness on his member was none other than Zangy’s maw, and for some reason he didn’t really feel opposed to it. Or at least he didn’t want to react this way. To be fair, he didn’t know how to react. Too many things racing through his mind at the moment before all his thoughts scrambled away at the sight of Zangy’s half lidded eyes as she seemed to be giving him oral sex.  
  
Zangy was the one to move first, lifting her head away from Dave’s erection and closing her maw. Dave felt the cold air on his erection, colder now that it was almost fully coated by Zangy’s saliva. Both looked at each other, neither knowing what to do next or say. Suddenly Zangy felt her world crashing down, her ears folding back as the guilt started to eat her from the inside. What she did was wrong, and the fact Dave couldn’t even react was enough proof of what was to come. She had taken advantage of Dave’s trust, she… She. She hurt him. She hurt whatever friendship they had; she blew it.  
  
Dave had similar thoughts going through his mind, at first shock and anger for not having respected his privacy, but soon all the thoughts of Zangy’s life experiences also came in. Was he cold hearted enough to reject her and punish her for what she thought was the right thing to do? It was enough seeing how mortified she looked, but once Dave saw Zangy’s expression break into sadness he snapped. He did love her, and this was not worth destroying her last attempt for the intimacy she’s been… He couldn’t blame her. If Dave was honest with himself… if he was in Zangy’s position right now.  
  
Dave propped onto the bed, sitting up and quickly reaching to Zangy. Zangy moved back, afraid she’d get hit or pushed away, but instead she was pulled into a hug. Dave’s arms gently wrapped around her furred frame, holding her tightly against his naked flesh. Zangy could only close her eyes and remain in his embrace limp, in defeat, and ashamed of what she had done. She realized she hurt way more to the thought of disappointing Dave than to being caught. She felt his hands slowly caress her back, and over her own thoughts she heard Dave say on a very soft voice.  
  
“Please don’t cry… I… I’m shocked, yes, but…” Dave started, holding Zangy still on a thigh hug. “I… sort of saw this as a possibility, but I never… I don’t want to hurt you. I didn’t want to misinterpret your feelings.” He continued saying, trying to organize his thoughts.  
  
He then pushed away from the hug, still holding Zangy by her arms as he looked at her blue streaked fur on her face. He smiled, leaning close and giving her a tender kiss on her nose, his own heart racing as he drew the kiss lower, giving her an unmistaken kiss on her maw. He wouldn’t pull away from the kiss, wanting to pour the care and love he felt for Zangy through this action. Slowly he felt Zangy relax her muscles and reciprocate the kiss, having an inner warmth build up inside both of them.  
  
“We can’t… do… well. We… Zangy, I’m not mad. I’m not upset… Please understand that. I care about your feelings, and I try to understand you the best I can.” He then said, pulling away from the kiss and looking at Zangy at eye level.  
“We’ll try to talk this out in the morning, but please… don’t… Don’t do that while I’m asleep or… if I haven’t. You know… I’m not sure how it works for pokemon, but you can’t just do that if I’m not aware of it. That’s what I’m trying to say.”  
  
Zangy just listened, waiting a few seconds before nodding and looking down. She pulled away from the hug, looking onto the floor as she prepared to leave. She felt horrible, moving back until she was stopped.  
  
Dave had reached onto her again, pulling her slightly towards the bed.  
“Zangy, this doesn’t change how I feel for you or for Azura. I mean it… please. Stay tonight, alright? Just don’t try those things on me…” Dave said, trying his best to not crush Zangy’s feelings to dust. To this Zangy looked at him, a very faint sliver of hope shining briefly into her eyes.  
  
To Zangy’s surprise, Dave took her hesitation as a positive sign pulling her back into the bed on a swift move. He scooted back, holding her with his arms until he laid down, pulling her in as well. Zangy didn’t know how to react to this… She felt relieved. She only wanted to forget what had happened, and she wishes she hadn’t done it like this. Dave placed one arm on top of her, hugging her from behind as he fixed the covers over both of them. This was the first time she’d be sharing a bed with Dave like this. She could feel his naked body against her back, all naked but from his boxers that he had slid back up. Zangy closed her eyes, trying to embrace this moment, calming herself and being soothed by Dave being there and not pushing her away as she expected.  
  
“Sleep well Zangy, okay? We’ll talk about this in the morning, calmly, and… it’ll be alright.” Dave said, these last words creeping into Zangy’s mind as both soothing and concerning. She relaxed for she didn’t want to worry about that now. Much less when now she was being spooned by Dave, holding her against him with his arm. She felt right, she felt that was the place she belonged.  
  


* * *

  
  


On the other room, Azura was curled up in a fluffy cloud-like shape, having her head resting atop her body. Suddenly the room was briefly illuminated by a flash coming from the woods behind the hotel, to which Azura opened one eye. She saw a faint trail of smoke coming from it but couldn’t make out anything else. Probably a quick attack or anything of those sorts from wild pokemon. She went back to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again, thanks for putting up with my... this thing. I do appreciate all of you who make it to the end of each chapter, comment, or leave kudos. Thank you all. 
> 
> I know this work isn't much, nor the best, much less the prettiest, but it means a lot to me that I can share something others can enjoy. I hope you all enjoy it when reading it. 
> 
> As always, comments are open and well received, any criticism will also be taken into account. Have a good one everybody.


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